Earth
by Servatia
Summary: I hate summaries. Sequel to Air, but I'll make it understandable without it. Our friends are sent to a research station for their evaluations after a long absence from Starfleet. While they're there, people go missing on the planet below, while the station loses contact with the world outside. Some slash, but nothing explicit.
1. Off to New Shores

_((If you come here from _Air_: Welcome back. If you haven't read _Air_: Welcome!_

_The purpose of this prologue-thing is to provide you with the information what was the situation at the end of the first part. I will not explain everything in detail, but I will take care this is easily understandable as a stand-alone text.))_

* * *

'Fleet Admiral Williams, I have a request to make.' Williams smiled. His grey hair was falling to his shoulders in light curls, the three top buttons of his shirt open. He didn't look like a man of the military, and he didn't care if people were miffed about that. He hadn't been for a long time, and now that he would retire in a year, he cared even less.

'Admiral McCoy, welcome.' He rose and approached briskly, extending his hand. The doctor's shake was firm. It was hard to believe that he was indeed the old man who had retired shortly after his oldest friend had been pronounced dead for the second time. Now he, Captain Spock, the aforementioned friend Captain Kirk, and one Lieutenant T'Kray, who had crashed on the planet Dainam decades ago and had been presumed dead, were not only very much alive, but apparently far from old. No one seemed to know how, including themselves, but their identities had been checked and double-checked so often now there was no way this was a mistake. 'What can I do for you?' He indicated the visitors' chair and returned to his seat behind the desk. 'Your applications for transfer to the Cristóbal de Morales space station are yet pending, but it shouldn't be a problem. You will all be transferred there within the month.' McCoy waved him away.

'That's not it.' He straightened himself in his chair. 'I request reduction of my rank to Commander. Or Lieutenant Commander or whatever you see fit. I don't care.' Fleet Admiral Williams gaped at him.

'Would you tell me why?' McCoy's reply was a growl.

'Simple. I don't want to rot in an office or at the academy.'

'Well, sorry. No.' McCoy clapped his hands together and rose.

'I thought you might say that.' He folded his arms. 'Let me tell you something, young man.' It should feel ridiculous to be called that, but McCoy delivered it convincingly enough to make the Fleet Admiral cringe. 'If you refuse, I will refuse to work, since I am, in fact, retired. And I will call in all the favours and all amenities my rank earn me. I'll be a constant pain for the next … what? Yes. The next hundred years, at least.' He smiled. 'That your last word?' Williams looked resigned. He raised his arms.

'Let me think about it.'

'By all means. I'd like an answer before I leave. You will receive the formal request before tomorrow morning. Good evening, Sir.'

'Good evening.' The door had barely closed when he received a message that there was someone else. 'Come in, please,' he called. The heavy oak door opened again, revealing Captain Spock. The Fleet Admiral was glad. Vulcans were more predictable. He took his glass of water from his table and drank.

'Captain Spock, what can I do for you?'

'Good evening, Fleet Admiral Williams. I request that my rank be reduced to that of a Commander or below.' The glass slipped from Williams's hand, shattering on the floor.

ϡ

Williams glared at the four people before him. 'Your shuttle will leave in an hour. Be sure you aren't late. McCoy, Spock, get over here.' The two men exchanged a glance and did as they were told. 'I wouldn't have done this, but there seems to be no precedent where someone's request to have their rank reduced was rejected. I can hardly believe it, but I would actually have to provide a reason why I don't grant your request, and after your long absence from Starfleet service I'd be hard pressed to find one. In the end, I figured as Lieutenants your potential for tyranny is much smaller.' To reduce them both to the lowest command rank was a slight, but Williams had been angry enough to go through with it. Their requests to have their ranks reduced hadn't been specific, so that wasn't a problem. If he had hoped they would appear irritated by this he was disappointed. 'I will also see that your retirements are declared invalid and that you cannot be promoted to a higher rank until you have proven yourselves, regardless of your previous achievements, your history being effectively wiped out. If you you agree with all that, sign here. If you don't agree, get out of my sight.' Doctor McCoy grinned at Kirk behind him and signed with a flourish. Spock followed his lead and they stepped back in line with the other two.

Williams shook his head. 'The Morales station is mostly a research station, but it is also a key supplier for the planet and actually nothing more than the extended arm of the Mavenow science centre. T'Kray and Doctor McCoy, you will answer to Doctor Mamad Kopty, the CMO of the space station. Captain Kirk, your commanding officer is Commander Irina Melczuk in engineering for the moment, but you will be in various departments of course. Spock, you are on the science station under Commodore Victor Bligh, who is also the highest ranking officer of the space station. You will receive orders from these people respectively. On the Cristóbal de Morales space station and the planet Mavenow, your ranks have no meaning. You are practically cadets as long as you are being tried. After a while, you will be given responsibility. Use this year. Use it well and be glad I have no part in your evaluations. Now leave.'

* * *

_((There was a small hint that T'Kray had a title or rank of some description, but I didn't get to say what that was exactly. It never mattered before._

_I spent the last hour or so trying to find out what major Kirk chose in the Academy. I failed magnificently, because it never says. I even resorted to look through the alternate timeline article, which I'd sworn a solemn oath not even to glance at. Memory Beta, which I looked into as a last resort, proved equally uninformative. Now what I took from the alternate timeline bit is that he has some knowledge of Xenolinguistics. From what sorting through my personal memory banks brought up, I would put him in engineering – which was my intuitive choice. So there's that._

_Mainau, named Mavenow centuries ago, is an island in the German/Austrian/Swiss Lake Constance. It's pretty as a painting, lush and full of flowers, and practically one large park. Cristóbal de Morales was a composer of the 16__th__ century._

_I will not be overly fast for the time being, just so you know. I'm currently alone in my department, so I'll actually have to work while I'm at work.))_


	2. O Bless the Freedom that You Never Chose

_((I am very sorry that this update comes so late. I had the second chapter finished Sunday 03.11.2013 and intended to proofread it the next day. Only my USB-Stick died, and the file with it. Luckily, I save everything onto my HDD every few days, so nothing else got lost. I would very much like to use a colourful metaphor to describe my sense of frustration, but it's not worth raising the rating. Please insert swearwords of your own choice._

_Star Trek is kind enough to use metric, so I'll do that, too. Phew._

_On a more worrying note (for me, that is), given the way I split my group, I have to do something I managed to avoid throughout Air. Oh brother. I'm trying to do something there, but I have no idea if I'll be able to pull it off until the bitter end. I really should, though._

_And again, I cannot come up with a chapter heading, so I take one that makes sense if you think around seven corners. Trust me, a year from now even I won't get it any more. Anyway, I quote one W.H. Auden, or rather the music by the wonderful, brilliant, highly underrated Benjamin Britten, more precisely the Hymn to Santa Cecilia.))_

* * *

The three people greeting the new arrivals at the Cristóbal de Morales space station were all rather tall, but the Commodore towered over the other two by half a head still. Apart from Jim and his people, two Caitians had come here. They looked so much alike he wondered if they were brothers. They were both tall, both with jet black fur with white markings that were more pronounced in one of them. 'Welcome,' Commodore Bligh said in a deep, carrying voice. With greying hair, crow's eyes, and a friendly look on his face, his appearance was impressive without being intimidating. 'I am Victor Bligh. Let me introduce you to your tutors.' He indicated the man on his left. 'Our CMO, Commander Doctor Mamad Kopty. A few words from you?' Kopty stepped forward. He was shorter than Bligh but not by more than five centimetres. In addition to his height, Kopty had twice Bligh's girth. He gave them fierce looks, but then his round face broke into a grin that belied his attempt at grimness.

'So I hear I get a legend and a Vulcan. Doctor McCoy, I wonder which of us will be the teacher here. T'Kray … Not many Vulcans that choose to leave their homes for good. Given your people's love for science you're fairly earthbound. Or vulcanbound, if you will.' T'Kray did Kopty the favour to offer a small smile.

'You will find that I see many things differently.'

'McCoy, what are you even doing here? Why not jump right back into a starship?' McCoy shrugged.

'I never cared for technology. I still don't, but if I want to work again, I need to catch up.'

'So you know what it is you avoid using whenever you can. Don't get me wrong I'm with you there. Know thy enemy.' He gave a dismissive gesture. 'There'll be time enough for chit-chat later. I'll see you in my sickbay.' Commodore Bligh gestured towards the woman to his right.

'Commander Irina Melczuk, head of engineering.' Melczuk had watched Kopty throughout his speech, her expression distant and a little wary. Now she pursed her lips and stepped forward.

Jim swallowed. She was tall, taller than him with her high heels. Even though she was not standard pretty, there was a certain elegance about her, including everything from the contrast between her light complexion and her almost black hair to the way she held herself. When she spoke, he noticed a very slight accent to her low, deep timbre. His first thought about her, however, was that he was very sure he didn't want to get on the wrong side of her.

'Captain Kirk and Vral from Cait, I am told. You'll have an interesting time, that's certain. It won't be easy. You'll have to be good to survive training in my department. Being famous – or infamous – will not help you.' Kopty had taken his turn to watch Melczuk. When she was done he shook his head minutely. Bligh grinned.

'Which leaves me and my two charges. Lieutenant Spock, I could repeat Mamad's question to Doctor McCoy, but I'll refrain. Kresar … this is the first time we have Caitians here. The time ahead of us will truly be interesting, as Irina said.

'Over the years we have made the experience that a mixture of practical and theoretical work is the most effective. You will spend every second and fourth day on the planet taking lectures, the rest you are up here. Since we're a part of the academy, days six and seven are free as long as you are considered students. I recommend using them for studying, at least in part. But you are not adolescents, so I trust you to know what is best.

'Your personal effects have been brought to your rooms. On the desk behind me, you will find maps. I am not going to give adults a tour, you can do that yourselves. It isn't as difficult as one might think at first. You will get yourselves situated, then we'll expect you in our respective departments. Until then.'

ϡ

Leonard had greeted the information that his things had been brought to his room with some scepticism. They had been informed how much they could store in their rooms, and that was little, but still … Something always got lost. However, he was surprised that the package he had prepared sat beside the bed, obviously untouched. There was a desk with a portfolio that seemed to be perfect for the map. On the bed lay a uniform, a black pair of trousers and a blue man's-shirt. The shirt had a stiff collar and on it two white insignia. Nowadays' uniforms had golden insignia and they certainly didn't have shirts like that. The message was clear: In theory, he had the rank of a lieutenant. But in fact, he was pretty much a civilian who was allowed to play officer.

Taking a look at the map, Leonard's heart sank. He had an excellent memory and a good sense of direction, even if space sometimes messed with the latter. He assumed someone had attached a camera to a cat and made it run up and down through the space station until it had the entire place covered. Then the cat owner must have sat down and used the footage the cat had acquired, including air vents and what not. Making up his mind to start off in the general direction he suspected the sickbay to be in, Leonard left his room with a scowl, the map held at eye level and his face practically buried in it.

'Watch out before you take someone's eyes out.' A hand drifted into his field of vision and pushed down the map. 'Whoa. I didn't mean to make you angry.' Leonard shook himself.

'No, T'Kray, it wasn't that.' He managed a half smile. 'I just … This place … That map.' He faltered. The Vulcan placed a hand on his arm.

'Leonard … what are you doing?' He opened his mouth to answer, but she continued before he had a chance. 'You're worrying yourself into a frenzy. You cannot function like that. The map is bad, I'll give you that. But what you need is on it, and the rest is up there in your head.' Leonard glared at the map and held it against the wall with his left hand. With his right, he indicated where they had to go.

'Right. So I'd say we follow this corridor until the end, go through the door to the left. That corridor we follow past the first three doors … no, that's an air vent … the first two doors. Then we go through the next one, there. And that's … well, then through here and we should be there.' T'Kray had stepped behind him and looked over Leonard's shoulder.

'What was that you were nervous about?' He could hear her smile in her tone and turned, stuffing the map into the portfolio.

'I'll tell you that when I see where we end up.' T'Kray took the map from him.

'In the sickbay. Trust me.' A smile tugged at Leonard's lips. T'Kray extended the second and third finger of her right hand to Leonard. He smiled more widely and touched his respective fingers against hers. They had done this a few times, and by now he didn't have to brace himself before the whisper of her mind in his. Come to think of it, he started to relish it. When the contact broke, he felt slightly dazed. T'Kray tugged at his sleeve. 'Come on, Len. Let's go.'

In the sickbay, Doctor Kopty was busy scanning a young man. 'Well, you are fit for duty again. You may go.' He turned to the two arrivals. 'So you've found your way, congratulations. T'Kray … I never knew there even were Vulcan psychologists. Your people doesn't appear to need them.'

'They don't, but I never intended to stay there. I wanted to go into space from the beginning. I figured there is much room for a psychologist there.'

'Indeed, although many medical doctors in Starfleet had profound knowledge in that area when you were a student, and some still do. Doctor McCoy is but one example. Space psychology is one of his specialities.' T'Kray raised an eyebrow at Leonard. He huffed.

'Well, they keep saying that. But it doesn't make me a psychologist. It's like saying, hey, he recognises a paramecium when he sees it, he must be a biologist. There are overlaps is all.' Kopty folded his arms. T

'And you, Doctor, why are you here? I have you files, you know, and yours shocked me a little. Transporter phobia, aerophobia, and suspected thanatophobia in general, it says there. There is also a record that when you left for the first five year mission, they thought you'd be back within a year.' Leonard had flushed crimson. He glared pointedly at Kopty, refusing to look down or away. 'T'Kray, what do you make of such information. What would you recommend a cadet with that on his back when he says he wants to go into space.' T'Kray's answer was that of a professional.

'I would not presume to give advice based on a file. I would talk to the cadet. And in Doctor McCoy's case, it wouldn't take me more than ten minutes to figure out that he has it in him to do whatever he chooses. He is determined to the point of stubbornness, and that is actually a good thing in a CMO. In addition, it is what it takes to overcome fear. None of these things say anything about a man's character. Doctor McCoy is a very brave man. I saw that first hand, more than once.' When she continued, her face and tone remained impassive, but her eyes, fixed on Leonard now, were smiling. 'This only makes you more so. You faced what you fear and you conquered. Very impressive, especially for a human.' Kopty snorted.

'A very good answer, I must say. T'Kray, you will have a little chat with every officer from Lieutenant upwards, including McCoy. The medical records are available to both of you. I want you to find out if they're overworked, unhappy about life in general, if there's inexplicable aggression, suppressed stuff, anything odd and out of the ordinary on a well manned space station. McCoy, you will take blood samples of the same people and check them thoroughly. And I want you to do that with our modern equipment as well as your common sense and anything you can dream up. You're known to be creative, and I want you to demonstrate that.' Leonard traded a short glance with T'Kray, and Kopty grinned at them. 'Yes, there is a reason why I want you to do this. But the good thing is that you aren't biased, you cannot make assumptions. So just do as I ask, and tell me what you find out. When you're done, I'll tell you what I think.'

ϡ

When Jim reached the engineering section, he found Vral already there, looking slightly out of place. 'Commander Melczuk anywhere?' Vral's left ear twitched.

'I haven't seen her.' Jim smirked.

'That sounds like you don't much care to see her, either.' When the Caitian didn't answer, Jim laughed. 'I'm not sure I like her either.' Vral came closer and spoke in almost a whisper.

'She looks dangerous.' Jim shrugged.

'She looks wary. That's often reasonable.' As if on cue, the door opened to reveal Irina Melczuk. Without a word, she approached her two students.

'I am not at all certain that I want you messing with my machinery here,' she told them lightly. 'If I'd had my way, you would be on the planet for a month before you touch anything. However, the Academy doesn't agree.' She folded her arms. 'So here it is. The transporter here hasn't been working lately. The computer scan cannot find anything, so I want you two to look into it. Find what's wrong. Don't repair anything, check with me first. Do you understand?'

'Affirmative,' Kirk said automatically. Melczuk's eyes narrowed.

'Good. Then keep listening. Engineering in the Cristóbal de Morales space station means many things. It means engineering as you understand it, but it also includes maintenance of ships that come here, it means maintenance on Mavenow, and it means safety checks on the shuttles. Now there's a second problem. We have a number of shuttles. Two of them are dead. As with the transporter, the computer systems find nothing wrong with them.'

'May I ask a question?'

'Ask, Kirk.'

'How long since the problem was noticed?'

'A week. And the shuttles went first, the transporter followed. The one in engineering is the only one that malfunctions.' Jim swallowed, a horrible, almost buried memory coming back to him.

'Malfunctions how?'

'Badly, Captain. Believe me when I tell you that you wouldn't want a precise description.' She took a deep breath. When she continued, her entire demeanour had changed, the undertone of anger gone. 'Take a look at these things and document anything you find, even if it seems unimportant. Anything that isn't ordinary. Tomorrow, you will have lectures on Mavenow, the day after you continue. If you have any questions, try consulting the computer first. I believe in learning by yourselves is best. If that does not help for whatever reasons, don't hesitate to come to me.'

ϡ

According to the map, the science station was huge. Granted, a certain size was to be expected. Mavenow, according to the Federation database, had little animal life but excellent conditions perfect for plants – almost all plants, in fact. The planet had everything from ice plains, perfect for hiemifoils, to deserts that provided the ideal conditions for lahv-mor, which humanity, in a fit of typical inaccuracy, had translated into flos linguiformis. At least the trivial name they had come up with was better: Tongue leaf was the correct translation for the greyish plant that was many things, but certainly not a flower. It was very similar to Earth's ferns, including the fact that it did not even have flowers.

The first room in the science department contained computers, microscopes, and various other instruments for more or less automated methods of study. At one of these computers sat Kresar, deep enough in concentration not to react to the door opening and closing. Commodore Bligh did not appear to be present, so Spock headed to the open door on the other end of the room. It led into a greenhouse that must take up about fifty percent of the science department. It explained the extent of the section.

Spock stepped into the greenhouse and took a moment to let the impression sink in. There were huge slabs that could be shifted on tracks of metal so every slab was easily accessible. They were filled with potted plants of all shapes and colours. On two large tables – smaller than the slabs but still very impressive – there were fifty-two plants each. For some unknown reason, the two tables held specimens of the same plants. Spock knelt to get a closer look at one of them, when he heard the swish of the entrance to the science department. Straightening himself, he returned to the first room and stood with his hands folded behind his back, looking at the approaching Commodore and waiting for an instruction.

'You found my little kingdom. Excellent.' He smiled. Kresar now stood beside his chair, looking at Commodore Bligh with obvious anticipation. 'Now here's the thing. I have your results at the first evaluation, but as a scientist, I like to see things for myself. I want to watch you work. Did you take a look at the greenhouse, too, Kresar?'

'I looked, but I didn't enter. I thought you might not want anyone in there.' If this were Jim and not the Commodore, Spock would have informed Kresar that leaving the door open was usually not a sign it was forbidden to enter. Bligh, however, was an unknown quantity, so he remained silent. The Commodore did not appear to be the type to tell someone to be silent because they spoke unbidden, but he was not going to test that theory on the first day. Bligh waved Kresar away.

'I'd have locked the door then. Well, go now. Anything you notice?' After Kresar had looked at the two tables for a while, he gave the Caitian equivalent to a shrug: a twitch of his ears. Spock decided to answer.

'The tables hold the same plants, each fifty-two different ones. Very different. None of them are related, as far as I can see.'

'All correct. Are you familiar with any of them?' Spock walked around the table, inspecting the various specimens. He knew none of them. Some appeared vaguely familiar, but there was nothing he could name.

'Negative.' Kresar looked at one particular plant.

'I do. This is an Indian fig.' Spock looked at the corresponding plant on his table.

'Negative. It resembles the opuntia humifusa at first glance, but it is something entire different, probably not even the same order. It smells like rosa centifolia flowers, but the shape of the flower suggests it is a member of the composite family.' He picked up the pot and raised it to eye level. 'The leaves are thick and firm, and I assume they store water like those of succulent plants. I would, in fact, be at a loss if I had to tell you what this is. Obviously an angiosperm. Probably a eudicot. Something similar to asterids. I am, of course, guessing.' Bligh looked impressed.

'Well, I thought Vulcans prefer not to answer to guessing, but I can see where you come from. Verify this. None of these plants are classified or even described. They are all native to Mavenow and have been discovered only recently. I want each of you to work alone. Only when you are finished we will all three compare your results. I am very curious what we'll find out.'

* * *

_((My source for the bits of Vulcan I use (the fern thing, for example) is the Vulcan Language Dictionary: www. starbase-10. de/ vld/_

_Someone save me from myself please. I don't normally write sci-fi. I write fantasy, the occasional murder mystery and I mix romance and sometimes smut into it. But I don't write sci-fi. Like ever. Tried once, lost the file, gave it up as a bad job. It just so happens that what I finally did recall of that (ten years later) became Air. Now here I have two options. Take the easy way out, write what I want to be the outcome, who the hell needs an explanation anyway? Add some technobabble and be done. Or … gnaw your way through books and the internet and bug scientists of the family for information. I have a library full of book (real scientific books) about medicine and physics and chemistry and biology and heaven knows what else at my disposal. So do I do Star Trek the disservice to produce soft sci-fi? No. Can't do it._

_This means I'll be a bit slower (but not as slow as I was with this chapter, I swear – no more accidents!) but at least I can look at my face in the mirror again._

_In that vein, the next is for plant people:_

_Hiemifoils don't exist, obviously. Hiems is Latin for winter, that's all there is to them. Flos linguiformis would be Latin for tongue-shaped flower – flos being flower._

_Indian fig is a trivial name for different plants, among them the Eastern Prickly Pear, aka Opuntia Humifusa. Angiosperms are flowering plants in plain English, as opposed to gymnosperms that include conifers of all sorts. Rosa x centifolia is a hybrid rose that is used for making perfumes and jam. Eudicots are plants that, when they first grow out of their seeds, have two leaves (as opposed to one), simply speaking. Asterids are one group of these plants, rosids (largely rose-related) are another. The Indian fig is a eudicot all right, but more closely related to caryophyllales, that are carnation-like plants. So Kresar wasn't all wrong. And I promise I won't get that carried away all the time.))_


	3. In Safety, a Hidden Sphere

_((The chapter heading is a line from the song _Sleepwalker's Dream_ by Delain. It's stupid o'clock in the night now that I'm done proofreading, so I ask forgiveness for anything I may have overlooked.))_

* * *

'You'd think these things were ridiculous enough back in the day.' Leonard's muttered words were quiet enough to be inaudible even at the next desk. If James' grin was any indication he had heard. And so had T'Kray. She leaned slightly to her left.

'What did you expect? An ageing professor holding a lecture?' she whispered back. He huffed.

'I don't know. No. But a lecture about, you know, medical technology, some such. Absurd idea, I know.'

'Shut up, Bones. I'm trying to listen.' T'Kray raised her eyebrows.

'You know you can read the house rules and such on the space station. Those for Morales and Mavenow.' Leonard grinned.

'Let him be all studenty, if he feels like it. We'll be quiet.' James's head had turned at that, and for a moment T'Kray thought he was going to speak, but he remained silent.

The lecturer, as was usually the case in courses for larger groups, was a computer. They were only six people now, but T'Kray assumed there was no reason to make a scientist recite these rules. The worst thing about them was that they were the same rules that applied to any laboratory and to space vessels of any description. There were many of them, and so far she hadn't heard anything that had changed. What was more, these rules were something she considered was a given. The same was certainly true for her companions. The two Caitians were probably the only ones who had never heard them, but she was fairly certain that even so they weren't going to enter a Jefferies tube with open fire.

T'Kray blocked out the computer voice. She had other things to think about, starting with her task in the sickbay. The night before they hadn't had an opportunity to talk. As a Vulcan, she wasn't one to draw conclusions based solely on conjecture, but she couldn't help thinking there was something very wrong. It wasn't standard procedure to have all officers undergo a psychological evaluation. That might pass as occupational therapy, something to keep her busy, but there was no reason to have Leonard take blood samples. This was very rarely done nowadays and usually a sign that people were at a loss. It was definitely not a task you would give a medic whose major problem was a technological knowledge gap.

She and Leonard had launched directly into their objectives, so far without finding anything of interest. On their way back to their rooms, they had talked, but Leonard was not a Vulcan and had been tired enough without her sending his mind reeling. Now he looked ready to fall asleep, but that had more to do with the fact that the computer was just reading out rule number 78 (Security in Dealing with Classified Information towards Provisional Officers) than with fatigue.

When the screen went black a moment before the speakers died, he didn't even react for a full three seconds. Then he blinked a few times. 'What? Is this over?' James looked at him and laughed.

'Something's broken, I think. I guess they'll continue in a moment.' A door opened, revealing a young woman with a token white cloak.

'Take your lunch break now. We'll try and fix this in the meantime.'

ϡ

The two Caitians obviously preferred to keep to themselves. Jim was grateful for that. Not because he had anything against Caitians in particular, or against these specific ones, but because he preferred to discuss what he needed with someone he knew. So when the Caitians sat on a table with two seats in the cafeteria, Jim carried his food outside into the courtyard, assuming the others would follow.

'So,' he said, glancing at the replicated piece of bread with slight scepticism. 'I don't trust this.' Bones snorted.

'Oh, don't be ridiculous, Jim. You won't know the difference. And if you do that's in your head.' He tore his own piece in half. 'Looks the same, tastes the same, if you'd analyse it there's no difference to the real thing. But I doubt you brought us out here to discuss food. Or to stare at it.'

'No, indeed.' He leaned forward, closer to the others. 'So, what is it you're doing up on the station? Because I'm getting a feeling that they aren't at all unhappy to have a few hands they can spare.' Spock frowned slightly.

'What gave you that impression?'Jim looked straight at Spock.

'Counter question: What were you and Kresar doing?'

'We were genetically determining various endemic plants of Mavenow.'

'Bones?'

'Testing personnel for whatever I find. Sounds like an exercise to me.'

'T'Kray?' She smiled slightly.

'I'm with you, Captain. The same as Leonard, really. Test command personnel, to be more precise. And even though that might as well be a test or an exercise, I am uncertain if that is actually the case.'

'Well, Vral and I have some real problems to deal with, and I think the same is true for you. There's malfunctioning transporter and two broken shuttles. We ran the computer diagnosis again, but it didn't find anything wrong with the transporter. Which is weird, because the transporter has been taken off the computer system and the shuttles are not responding to anything the computer is ordering them to do.'

'That suggests that the problem rests with the computer,' Spock said. Jim returned his gaze to him and nodded.

'Yes, but I have a feeling this isn't all. If I add your task to mine, T'Kray, that leaves me with a conclusion I hope isn't right.'

'What is that?' It was the Spock who answered.

'Tampering with the computer and the devices.' Jim nodded grimly.

'Shorter, sabotage. And as a consequence, murder. Because people died in that transporter. You, T'Kray, are apparently supposed to find out who did this, or at least, who is in a state of mind that makes him capable of something like this.' Spock opened his mouth but closed it again. Jim shook off his severe expression and managed a small smile.

'Speak up. I want to hear what you think.'

'I know that in our experience the answer is rarely innocent. However, I wish to point out that there is still an option it was an accident, either in the computer program or in the transporter and the shuttle.' Jim contemplated this.

'Agreed. It can be a coincidence, even if it seems like a rather convenient one. We shouldn't jump to conclusions. But you're right, let's not forget that it is a possibility. Maybe we should consider how the science task fits into the pattern, if at all. What sorts of plants are you dealing with, Spock?'

'There is not a simple answer to that question, Captain.' Jim grinned but said nothing. This would never change, no matter how close they would become eventually. The conversation was not a personal one so Spock was in officer mode. It was quite all right, and something that had always been this way. 'They vary in type, sharing only the fact that all of them are flowering plants. Something did strike me as odd, however. They are all recent discoveries, and none too inconspicuous. Mavenow's research station has been active for thirty-three years. Six years ago, a record entry stated that no new plants were expected to be found near the research station. The ones we have on the station now were all taken from a radius of ten kilometres around this building.'

'Let's keep all this in mind, even if it doesn't make sense yet.' Jim caught Bones smirking. 'What?'

'Oh, nothing. Only you've managed to wolf down half of your highly suspicious replicated food in the time Spock talked about his plants. Doesn't seem to bad after all, does it now?' Jim grinned.

'No, not half bad.'

ϡ

When they returned to the lecture hall, the screen was still dead, and the scientist looked distinctly flustered. She told them all, quite firmly in fact, that they should return to the space station for the day, because she did not believe the computer would be in perfect working order any time soon. She also hinted that people – whoever that was, precisely – needed to organise actual lecturers. Judging from the way she spoke, the idea was nothing short of outrageous.

Transport from and to the Morales was via transporter. Until that moment, they – apart from Jim – had not known there had been a malfunction. Spock glanced at Leonard, aware of his dislike of this particular means of travelling. If the doctor was afraid, he held himself well. He might look slightly paler than usually, but other than that there were no signs that he was in any way preoccupied. Stepping down from the transporter platform, however, he allowed himself a sigh of relief.

'Can't blame you, Bones,' Jim said quietly. A gentle hand was placed on Spock's arm and he was steered aside. 'There's something I'd like to ask you to do, if you have a moment.'

'Of course.'

'Listen, I'd like to rule out a computer error before I tell Commander Melczuk that there's a saboteur.'

'I shall look.'

'Spock, only do this if you really have the time. You're probably busy enough.' Spock took a moment to look left and right. The transporter room was currently unmanned, and T'Kray and Leonard had already left for their sickbay. He took Jim's hand and squeezed.

'I shall make time.' Jim smiled softly and continued ambling towards the engineering section.

'Any plans for the evening?'

'None so far.'

'I brought a chess set.'

'Excellent. Maybe I can give you an answer by that time.' Before he turned left for the science department, Spock halted and for once returned Jim's smile. 'I look forward to it, Jim.'

ϡ

If Melczuk was unhappy to see Jim and Vral in her department when they should be on the planet, she didn't show it. She merely told them she didn't have time to babysit them and that they had to get by on their own that day. 'There isn't anything physically wrong,' Vral said through gritted teeth, glaring at the open transporter console in front of him. 'It should be working.' Jim pursed his lips.

'Tell that the three dead men.' He very much wanted to hit something. 'There must be something, something the computer couldn't find, Vral. These things don't just decide to take a person apart on a whim and function perfectly the next time.'

'I know that.' Jim looked up at the Caitian, who looked slightly offended.

'I didn't mean it that way.' Vral's ears twitched. 'Let's think. Did we forget anything?' Vral looked towards the ceiling.

'Targeting scanners and molecular imaging scanners are in perfect working order. You checked the pattern buffer.'

'Thrice. Nothing wrong with it.' He paused. 'Hei...' Jim fell silent and stared at Vral.

'Heisenberg compensator,' the Caitian said quietly. 'We should ask if the three men that died were moving while being beamed here. And we should …' Jim shook his head.

'Look. I've been wondering if maybe someone sabotaged the transporter and the shuttles.' He lowered his voice. 'Spock will check the computer for a malfunction or signs of tampering. Then we talk to Melczuk.'

'And no-one else before that. We're using the other transporter every other day.'

'My thoughts exactly.' He took a deep breath. 'I suggest we tell Melczuk we're at a loss about the transporter for the moment and move on to the shuttles.'

The shuttles, according to the computer, were in perfect working order, too. In fact, however, two of them might actually be fakes, for all the good they did anyone. The doors had been forced open with sheer physical violence, and inside them, nothing responded. The computer, however, disagreed and claimed they were ready to launch. 'It makes no sense,' Jim said defiantly, staring at the instrument that might as well be measuring the voltage of a branch. 'No sense at all. With this result the computer should report the shuttle a total loss or non-existent! There's not even a basic voltage capable of telling the ship's computer it's there.'

'So what do we do?' Jim sighed.

'Well. We've got to take this thing apart. Now I know how to do that with the old shuttles, but these I'm not certain.'

'Shouldn't we wait for Melczuk?'

'She said we shouldn't repair anything. We aren't doing that.' Vral grinned.

'True. This is a type 15 shuttlepod. See these things on the outside? They're impulse nacelles. But those can't be the problem. Now we can't open the engine here. But we can check the conduits.' Vral opened the panel at the back of the shuttle. 'Look.' Jim did.

'Doesn't seem to have changed much. A little more cramped, maybe.'

'Which conduits would you check?' Jim looked through the cable clutter and selected three.

'These.' Vral leaned in close.

'Exactly. Same as the old ones?'

'Yes. Maybe Spock's right and I really don't need to learn everything from scratch.' Jim watched intently as Vral worked. The result didn't surprise him overly much. The engine was dead. The conduits, however were not the reason. Vral didn't look overly dejected, however. 'There's still something. These shuttles have an additional power supply: sarium crellide cells.'

'And where are those?' Vral into the shuttle, bent down, and fumbled with cover there. He was busy for more than a minute, removing the panel and cables, until he got to a small slot.

'Now in there … wait.' He took a small torchlight and pointed it at the slot. 'In there …' The Caitian faltered. With a sinking feeling, Jim sat on the second seat in the small shuttle and squinted into the slot.

'… is something that I'm ready to bet my life is not a power cell of any description,' Jim finished his sentence. 'I can reach in there without getting zapped?' Vral nodded, and Jim produced a small black metal cube. 'Now what is that?' Vral stared at the object and shook his head.

'No idea.' Jim tossed it in the air and caught it again.

'I'll find out.'

ϡ

Jim couldn't help grinning when he set up the chess set. For the moment he didn't care about the small black item he had placed at the back of his table or its twin he had slipped into the map's portfolio. There was a soft knock on his door. 'Come in,' he called. Spock entered with a grave expression.

'I found the time to check the computer for an error,' he said and sat down. 'There is one, but I could not remove it. That means that even if the transporter and the shuttle are repaired, I should consider it unsafe to use them. Anything that might have been overlooked would still interfere with functionality.' Jim watched as Spock made his first move.

'Any idea how that error came to be?'

'I am uncertain. It appears to be an internal error. I shall investigate if there were major changes to the programming prior to the malfunctions. If that is the case, I would say that is all there is to it. If not …' Jim nodded and contemplated the chess board for a moment.

'Understood,' he said while moving a piece. He looked up at Spock with a quizzical expression.

'Then … what? What would you do? Tell … whom?' The answer came at once.

'Commodore Bligh.'

'The highest instance.' Spock nodded. Jim marvelled at the focussed look on his face and waited patiently as the Vulcan thought. His expression changed only marginally when he had made up his mind and moved another piece.

'Yes, Jim. Something different entirely I've been wondering since I sat down at this table. What are you doing with a nara capsule?' Jim blinked.

'A what?' Spock raised his eyebrows. He reached over to the small metal object.

'This.' Jim beamed at him. He set down the chess piece he had taken where it had been at first and ran over to his portfolio.

'I've got a second one. They were in the shuttlepods in the place of sarium krellide cells. Are they a power source?' Spock looked mildly confused.

'No.' He inspected the small object. 'They are containers, usually for secret messages. If you try to force them open, a sound is triggered that sets of the nara.'

'Nara … these conductor crystals? I thought they were a banned substance.'

'They were, but recently, nara crystals small enough to be harmless have been authorised for certain uses. They only destroy the message when they explode. Your hand would be burned, but not very badly.'

'How do you open these?'

'With a voice command.'

'Makes sense.' Jim sighed. His chances of opening the capsules were close to zero. He had hardly picked up a chess piece when Spock caught his wrist with his left hand. 'Spock?' The Vulcan didn't let go.

'You had another piece before.' Jim blinked. He looked back down to the chess set and grinned.

'You're right. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to cheat.' A ghost of a smile flickered across Spock's face.

'I believe you.' The gentle hold on him was still there. With his right hand, Spock took the piece from him and returned it to where it had come from. His eyes were fixed on Jim's, and somehow, they had the same intense focus he had marvelled at before. Slowly, he moved Jim's hand to the table, set it down, and entwined his fingers with Jim's. 'I ask you to play with your left hand, Jim. I would like to keep this one.' This was the first time the Vulcan had made a move of this kind rather than shyly responding to something Jim had initiated. He beamed at him, knowing full well that what had remained of his concentration on the game had just soared out of the non-existent window and not caring one bit.

* * *

_((The nara crystals are a nod to Myst IV – Revelation._

_The term Jefferies tube is a TNG onwards term. I know that. But this takes place far enough post TOS to use that word. Which actually makes it more difficult for me, because I'm really a TOS-person and don't know later terminology all too well._

_I know I am not 100% consequent in direct (and probably reported) speech with the shall/will and should/would disambiguation. That's a very high standard thing no one does really. If you want to do it, you say I shall, you will, he/she/it will, we shall, you will, they will and the same with should/would. You can pick what you prefer for first person, second and third is always will or would. First is, if you want to sound bookish, shall or should. Spock tends to use shall, and that's why I'm doing it. But unlike not using contractions and other things he doesn't do, this is just a tendency, so I don't fell compelled to hunt down every single I will.))_


	4. Colours of the Wind

_((Chapter heading? Well, at least it makes sense. I have no idea around which corner this was lurking, but it ambushed me, and now it's clinging to my neck and I can't for the life of me think of something else. Oh, hell with it, there it goes.))_

* * *

Analysing blood samples of the command personnel took longer than one would expect. The problem wasn't so much that the procedure was complicated. What made things difficult was the fact that it wasn't something that was routinely done. Therefore, there was no standard procedure. At first, Leonard had looked for infections, anaemia, and mutations. Then he had found unusual antibodies in one sample and had gone back to those he had looked at before to see if they were there as well. The result, of course, was negative. And this had happened more than once. It was a way to spend a month, though.

T'Kray's task was little better. Responsibility had an effect on everyone, and it wasn't always to bring out the best in people. In other words, almost every higher ranking officers had something to contend with. None of them had shown murderous tendencies, but T'Kray was aware that this didn't necessarily have to mean anything.

Jim hadn't told Vral what the small capsule they had unearthed was, so neither he nor Kresar knew. As much as Leonard disliked secrets – especially unnecessary ones – he understood the need. They knew each other well enough, but the Caitians were perfect strangers, even if Jim and Vral did work well together. Spock didn't say much about Kresar, but that wasn't too unexpected. Vulcans didn't gossip.

Come to think of it, Leonard had no idea what the science department was on about at all. Their primary suspicion that the research they did in Sickbay was related to the problems in engineering had been confirmed by Jim and Vral's find in the shuttlepods. The science department seemed to have nothing to do with either.

After a particularly tiring shift, one of those where he went back to samples he had already tested thrice over, Leonard was so exhausted he fell asleep the moment his head touched the pillow. When he was woken up what felt like three minutes later, he was therefore understandably confused. At first, he had thought someone calling him was part of a dream, but then there was someone shaking him. He swatted at the hand, but it persisted, and he opened his eyes by a fraction.

The constant low light showed him Jim, fully dressed, and grinning down at him. 'What on earth do you want?' he growled.

'Get up. Come.' Leonard sat up and glared.

'What time is it?'

'Witching hour.'

'Are you insane?'

'Spock wants to show us something. He's fetching T'Kray.'

'They're Vulcans, they can go a week without sleeping. You and I, not so. Now get lost.'

'Come on, Bones.' He watched Jim leave his room. For a moment, he considered lying back down. Then he cursed, got up and changed, angry at himself for being way too predictable.

Outside, he found the two Vulcans and Jim. 'Now what?'

'To the transporter, of course,' Jim said.

'Now? Are we even allowed to go now?'

'Who should forbid us to go, and why?' Spock asked. 'The transporter room is manned twenty-four hours a day. Some researchers prefer to work late in the evening. We are perfectly entitled to go to the planet whenever we wish to.'

'Figures. But we're not entitled to sleep through the lectures tomorrow.'

'You'll stop complaining soon enough, Bones.'

'Am I the only one without a clue what you're on about?' T'Kray had her arms folded.

'No, I'm a little confused myself.' Jim smiled vaguely.

'You'll see.' The young man in the transporter room looked mildly surprised when Jim asked they be beamed to the science centre, but he obliged without question.

On the planet, all was quiet. Normally there were sounds from machines in the next room, or muffled talking, but now, at the dead of night, there was nothing. 'Are we the only ones in here?'

'Quite possibly,' Spock told him. 'We are heading outside.' He opened the door to the courtyard, and Leonard's jaw dropped.

'Heavens above.' Leonard had been on more planets than he could count. He had seen all sorts of places at all times of day and night. But this … this was unique. The darkness was far from complete, much rather, the light was a deep purplish blue. The trees beyond the courtyard towered before them like a black wall, impenetrable and forbidding. They had never before left the premises, but now, he knew, they would. He also knew where they would go. A cloud, swirling as if created by a myriad of little creatures, hovered above the trees, further into the wood. It emitted a pale emerald glow that made him think of legends of a spiritual host chasing the living. 'What is that, Spock?' The Vulcan seemed spellbound as well. His reply was very quiet and sounded distinctly awed.

'I shall show you. When we reach the place, you will see.'

It was the strangest forest Leonard had ever seen. It was dark inside, the trees casting almost solid looking shadows. They were like nothing he had seen before. There were a few familiar looking ones that might be oaks. But others were very strange, with huge, opalescent leaves, some with smooth bark like plane trees only jet black, some twisted and crooked like mountain pines. There were also mushrooms of all conceivable forms and then some.

'Brilliant,' he said, running his hand over the smooth bark of one of the plane like trees. 'Just brilliant. Why have we never gone out here?'

'Because whenever we are on the planet, we're working. And once we are done, we go back up.' Leonard glanced at T'Kray looking around her, her lips parted slightly and her expression smitten. He felt a sudden impulse to take her hand but caught himself in time. He had no idea how much he could allow himself. T'Kray was very patient with him and his qualms about telepathy, but if he wanted to gain momentum, he had to give her some as well. He decided it was high time for that.

After a short march they reached a small pond. Leonard had known it was there because it was on a map, but he hadn't given the thing much thought. The surface of the water was completely still in the warm air. Spock looked at it for a moment, then took a flat stone and let it jump on the surface. Leonard was going to make a comment, but whatever he'd had in mind got stuck in his throat. The concentric circles where the water had been disturbed danced with the same green shimmer they had seen above the forest. He approached and knelt beside the pond, not caring for a second that his clothes were getting wet. Running his hand over the surface, he marvelled at the effect. 'What on earth is that?' Spock's eyes were fixed on the water.

'Microorgansims. A similar phenomenon exists on earth, but only in oceans. And on earth, the bacteria responsible for what is called milky seas exist only in the water. Here, the organisms are in the air as well.'

'Then why is that water … I mean if they just fell in the water when they die, they wouldn't glow any more, assuming this is bioluminescence we're talking about. Can they live in both? Do they reproduce in the water?' Spock shook his head.

'I do not know. I intend to take a sample of the water and find out.' Leonard nodded.

'You do that.' He looked up at the Vulcan, his hand still absently disturbing the water. 'Thank you for waking me. This is beautiful.'

'Absolutely.' Jim's voice was laden with emotion. 'More than I imagined.' Leonard rose and glanced at him sideways. Spock stood half a step behind Jim now, the hint of a smile on his lips.

'I believed you would like to see this.' Jim merely nodded. For a moment, Spock seemed to be bracing himself, then he stepped forwards, placed his hands on Jim's shoulders and pulled him against him. There was a second of surprise on Jim's face, then a wide, happy smile, and he leaned into the other man. Leonard decided to look away discreetly, just to catch T'Kray watching them. 'This effect, on Mavenow, has never been described before it was found by the scientists three nights ago. They have determined that the organisms are vegetational and apparently harmless.' Spock pulled away from Jim with a visible mental effort, walked over to a log and sat down on it. 'Strange things are happening on this planet. There is plant life developing at a very fast rate, and there are flowers, herbs, and even shrubs no-one has seen before. Now this. I would really appreciate the opportunity to discuss anything you might have detected, even if we think it is irrelevant. I also believe that we should not do this in a place that is likely to be overheard.' Jim walked over to Spock and sat next to him.

'In other words, now and here would be ideal.'

ϡ

Brainstorming usually worked well for Jim. He'd always done that – bounce a question off Spock or sometimes Bones and see what they thought about it. But this time, it didn't help. He had the impression they were all struggling to prove that two plus two did, in fact, equal five, and no matter how hard they tried, they had to fail. 'This isn't getting us anywhere.' He hadn't spoken loudly, but Bones stopped speaking (quite emphatically) in mid-sentence and looked at him. 'We _believe_ there's a saboteur. We _believe_ that our senior officers think so, too. We _believe_ that they're uncertain if there's a psychological or a physical reason. But we know … we _know_ nothing.' Spock looked at him.

'Captain, I have to disagree with you. We know for certain that people died in the transporter and that two scientists vanished without a trace. According to the computer, this lake was searched very thoroughly, but nothing was found.'

'It can't have anything to do with those algae or whatever they are?' Bones asked with a gesture towards the pond.

'I do not believe so.' Jim shook his head.

'We aren't going to answer any of those questions now. I wonder if we're going to answer anything at all.'

'I wish to say something.' They all looked at T'Kray, who had been standing silently with her back to them for a couple of minutes. Now she turned and took them all in. 'On this station there is as much personnel as is required, they are by no means understaffed. The people I had a chance to talk to were all showing signs of being overworked, however. The reason for that weren't the hours. They were weary, irritable, some on the verge of being self-destructive. Some borderline depressive. None unaffected by whatever it is that is getting to them.' Her eyes rested on Jim. 'I am to talk to every higher ranking officer, including yourselves. I'll leave Spock out because he's a Vulcan. You, Len, I've had enough contact with during our work to tell that you show no symptoms.' He smiled slightly at that, somewhat enigmatically, and Jim wondered for a moment how far their relationship had actually gone by now. If anything major had happened, he trusted he would know. 'James … you concern me. You aren't one to talk about failure.' Jim shook himself.

'No. But I can't grasp what's going on. We're using the transporter on a daily basis, and given the practically non-existent fluctuation of personnel on the station, whoever damaged one and killed three men is still up there. If I just think about one of you not arriving with me …' He swallowed. 'Right. I'll admit it, Lieutenant. I am afraid. Afraid to … to lose one of you. Any of you.' His eyes fell on Spock and for a moment and he struggled with emotion. 'If I imagine …' The Vulcan shook his head marginally.

'You are not doing yourself a favour, Jim.' He rose. 'We have to find those answers. I shall start with this.' He shook the glass jar he had filled with water at one point slightly. 'We all have to do our best, but we also have to communicate. This is made difficult by our hours as well as the presence of Vral and Kresar.'

'Why not let them in on this debate?' Bones asked. T'Kray took a deep breath.

'Although I cannot rule out that something is influencing James, I am far from convinced that it is. I am convinced about Kresar, from what Spock has told me.' Bones's eyebrows shot up.

'Good to know you talk to someone, Spock.'

'I decided to communicate my concern to the person most likely to provide an adequate answer.' Jim saw Bones flare and raised his hands quickly.

'No, don't even get started. She is a psychologist, for crying out loud. Don't tell me you're jealous because Spock didn't ask you.' The doctor deflated visibly.

'No. I'm not.'

'Good. T'Kray, what about him?'

'I haven't talked to him myself. But from what Spock tells me, he is highly impatient with their project, and he wasn't in the beginning. Intellectually, he is not overchallenged, so that cannot be the reason. Whatever is happening to the officers is likely happening to Kresar.' Bones frowned.

'If this is somehow epidemic, I should find it.' T'Kray looked at him.

'I doubt it is so substantial, or something would have been found. I think it is an actual psychological condition, not a physical one. That makes it all the stranger, of course.' Jim walked over to the water, cupped his hands, and scooped some up. He watched it run down, the emerald light illuminating his hands as if they themselves were glowing.

'We … should go back up. And I agree. We have to repeat this. Soon.' They had hardly left the transporter on the space station before Jim had all but fled back to his room.

ϡ

The next morning, Leonard was still concerned, apart from royally tired. Jim's departure the evening before was very likely a sign of fatigue, but what T'Kray had said made him think. He was going to talk to her about this. He entered the transporter room with a sense of foreboding that had nothing to do with beaming and found Jim already inside. He looked young, younger than he had any right to, leaning casually against the wall and grinning at Bones. He decided he didn't buy it. 'You're either pretending to be so damn cheerful, or you're drugged. Or you managed to get into a time loop and get a reasonable amount of sleep. I doubt that last.' Jim let out a guffaw of laughter.

'No, none of them.' He pushed himself of the wall. 'Where are they?'

'It's early morning, Jim. No-one's supposed to be that cheerful at this time. You least of all. Spill it.' If anything, Jim's grin grew wider, and Leonard glared at him. 'You did take something, didn't you? What the hell was it?' Jim was about to answer, when the door opened, revealing the two Vulcans.

'There they are.' He grinned at Spock. 'What kept you?' Leonard turned his glare towards Spock.

'Spock, I think he's drugged.' The obligatory eyebrow rose.

'What gives you that idea?' Leonard gestured at Jim who was still smiling his head off when he stepped onto the transporter platform.

'Just look at him,' he said once they were down. They took their usual seats, waiting for the two Caitians.

'I assure you that he did not ingest any suspicious substances.'

'And how the hell would you know that? It's not like you were there all ni...' He felt heat creeping into his face and was very glad there were no reflecting surfaces around. At least he didn't see himself flush. 'Don't answer that.' He looked away, his eyes finding T'Kray who shot him a cool glance.

'Have you ever built a wall?' He blinked at her.

'Yes. Why in blazes are you asking that?' Her expression flickered into a grin.

'Because you tend to drop bricks, Len.'

* * *

_((If you're of age and actually like this sort of thing, there's an M-rated text on my profile that fills the gap between the last two segments of this chapter. Consider if M-rated slash is something you want to read before you go there. If you do, it's called _All You Need and More_._

_On a different note, I can kind of relate to Bones's problem in the first paragraph. I'm going through this since this morning at work, only with an excel sheet rather than blood samples. Clairvoyant much? Head → desk.))_


	5. Without Fear

_((First of all, I am sorry this took so long. I have very little time right now, but that should get better in the next few weeks._

_The chapter heading is one of the (regrettably) few Italian Lacuna Coil songs. And it fits this chapter in two ways, in relation to two people. The English words for one, the Italian words for another. Do with that information what you will.))_

* * *

The invitation to the officers' mess was somewhat unforeseen. So far, they had been denied access to the staff- and common rooms of the command personnel. Spock could only assume it meant that he had, in some way, impressed Bligh. Ten minutes before he had to be there, Spock stepped out into the corridor to find a slightly flustered Jim Kirk, torn between hurrying and knocking at his door. 'Ah, I didn't know if you got one too.'

'If you refer to an invitation from Commodore Bligh, the answer is yes.' He started walking towards the officers' mess at a brisk pace, Jim falling into step beside him.

'Good. Any idea what this is about?'

'I know no more than you do, Jim.' The entrance still didn't open to them, it seemed. T'Kray and Leonard were already waiting.

'Now what do you think this is about?' the doctor asked after a few seconds.

'I prefer not to speculate at this point.' Leonard rolled his eyes. Rather than inquiring further, he decided to knock the door to the officers' mess. As if on clue, it slid open, revealing Irina Melczuk.

'Come in.' The interior of the room was very aesthetic. A large cymbidium with silken white flowers stood next to the bar, smaller orchids of various kinds were on the tables, and a purple vanda with yellow specks was suspended on the ceiling in the exact centre.

'An interesting choice of decoration, and one that demands much attention.' Melczuk nodded.

'A tribute to the planet below, if you will. Do you like my style?'

'Indeed.'

'Please have a seat, there is something we must discuss. At the same time, Victor is having a similar conversation with the Caitians. The difference is that they can choose.' She clapped her hands together and rubbed them. 'Well. You've all shown responsibility, knowledge of your areas of study, and efficiency. This means, we can take the next step with you.'

'We have not finished the tasks given to us.' Melczuk grinned at Spock. He was not certain why.

'That's because you were given monstrous tasks no-one expected you to finish any time soon. Maybe you can merely lay the foundation for a solution. Anyway, the next thing we need to observe is how well you work in a team. Given your history, Victor and I have agreed to pay special attention to how you work together. Not because we doubt you, but because despite Fleet Admiral Williams's resentment towards you coming here, we are more than content with your work so far. I assume you will want to be on a ship with the others?' The last question was clearly directed at Jim.

'Well, of course I do.' He smiled, his expression flickering towards Spock, a wave of warmth spreading over the mental link between them that was now rooted so firmly within both of them they would be able to communicate without words or touch entirely if Jim were a Vulcan. 'We all want that. I appreciate your support.' Melczuk nodded, and her expression changed to something more businesslike.

'According to your files, none of you have served on a space station for any significant amount of time. Is that correct?'

'It is,' Leonard answered.

'Well, then I assume none of you have experience with STC.'

'Come again?' T'Kray asked.

'Space traffic control,' Spock supplied. 'A rather obsolete practice.'

'Except computer systems sometimes fail, and here, they seem especially prone to do so.' Jim nodded slowly.

'Of course. If a ship needs to dock at the station, and we cannot guide them, they must fly in manually. And if we cannot guide them because of a major problem, we have to take care nothing goes wrong and instruct them. Verbally, step by step. A very responsible, painstaking process, and a true challenge. I assume the computer has a program to practice with.' Melczuk pursed her lips.

'Not quite. All ranks above ensigns have to work first with one of us who is experienced, then with others of their rank. Once a week, one of the consoles we use to monitor the system is switched to manual mode. You give instructions, but the computer guidance still works and is ready to intercept a ship before it collides with another one or the space station. So you will work with the real thing, but no lives depend on your accuracy.' Melczuk rose. 'Follow me to the control section, more commonly known as the tower.' Leonard huffed.

'I've had enough towers to last me a lifetime. I'll stick with control section.' Jim laughed, but Melczuk merely shot them a reproachful look. Throughout almost the entire conversation T'Kray had worn a slight frown. Leonard shot her a quizzical look and got a small shake of her head in reply. Whatever it was that kept her brooding, they had to wait to find out.

ϡ

It was his knowledge of history that told him why this place was called a tower. In the twentieth and twenty first century, when people had travelled in planes, air traffic control had been run in towers – at least where landing and departure was concerned. Area control was usually in a different place entirely. Anyway, the thing that history remembered about air traffic control was a tower with people working in shifts, and in a way, this wasn't dissimilar. The main difference was that an exercise such as this was very much superfluous. It was what Bones would call a vigilance test, mostly.

This tower had five computer terminals, one for each dock. As it was done in the days of air traffic control, two people manned each terminal. Four eyes saw more than two, only that now all they had to do was check if the system was operative. It was a relaxing kind of work now, even though it had been one of the most stressful jobs back in the day.

Jim spotted Kresar and Commodore Bligh at one terminal and approached with a smile. 'So you volunteer for this?' The Caitian kept his eyes on the terminal.

'Seems interesting, don't you think?'

'If I'm honest, I'd rather get that transporter fixed,' Jim admitted. Now he noticed that Kresar was wearing an actual uniform. 'How do you get to wear that?' Now Kresar did look at him and grinned.

'For starters, I've got to convince Bligh, not Melczuk. Also, maybe I'm just that good.' Jim wasn't going to do Kresar the favour to be provoked.

'Maybe,' he said calmly. He walked a few steps away.

'That is precisely what I meant,' Spock said calmly. 'His personality seems slightly pugnacious, but recently I noticed an increase in open and passive aggressiveness.'

'Might I have your attention?' Melczuk called. They all looked at her standing at another console. 'Thanks. On the terminals you see the coordinates of approaching and receding vessels and whatever their respective computers communicate to us.' Melczuk folded her arms. 'As you are probably aware, this is a very responsible task. I therefore require for a psychological evaluation for Kresar. All others, Mamad said, are done.'

'Correct. Will you require the results?' Melczuk tutted.

'No, I've got nothing to do with them. Give them to Victor.'

'Victor will read them, fail to understand a word, and move on,' Commodore Bligh said. T'Kray offered a smile.

'Understood. I shall keep the technical jargon at a minimum.' Bligh nodded.

'I appreciate it. Now go to one terminal each and watch. You will then, in turns, work them manually. An actual shift is eight hours long with a break every two hours. Today will be different of course. This isn't the real thing. If you should be interested in taking actual shifts after the few obligatory days you do this, do approach me.'

ϡ

T'Kray had brought Kresar to sickbay for testing directly after their first few hours in the tower. Now her eyes skimmed over the results the computer had provided. None of them were surprising. She looked over the screen at Kresar. 'What do you believe I am going to tell you?'

'That I am fit for duty.' T'Kray took a second before she answered.

'I am uncertain. I shall monitor you for the next four weeks. You will report to me every first and last day of a week for further testing.' She lowered her gaze to the screen. 'I have the results from Doctor McCoy as well. Your heart beat is slightly irregular, your digestion too slow, and you show signs of exhaustion. From what I gathered in the tests you had trouble sleeping due to rumination, …'

'Where do you get that from?' T'Kray crossed her arms and looked at Kresar.

'It is my job to find these things out in the tests. Are you saying my conclusion was wrong?' The Caitian hesitated for a moment.

'No,' he said then.

'Good. Your vigilance or attention could also be better, frustration tolerance is very low. Is there anything else you wish to tell me? You were not overly cooperative in this, and you were no more helpful during Doctor McCoy's examination.' She leaned forwards slightly. 'Talk to us. We cannot help if you don't.' She had no idea how often she had said that or something very similar lately. Those under pressure were very eager to remain silent, for some reason.

'No. Nothing I want to tell you.' There was a note of animosity in Kresar's voice. This, too, seemed to fit into a pattern.'I haven't any idea why I have to put up with this, I haven't done anything.'

'Physical and psychological examination is routine procedure in Starfleet,' she explained patiently. 'Everyone has to put up with it, Doctor McCoy and I are no exceptions. Apart from regular testing, whenever there is reasonable doubt of your health, we have not only the right, but the duty to do something about that.'

'Doctors always hide behind duty, all they ever want is to find out as much about you as they can. Then you log it somewhere, and if I say something, you whip out a report and use it against me.' Making a mental note to add paranoia to the list of symptoms, T'Kray shook her head.

'Scepticism can be a good thing, but I assure you that yours is misplaced. No one outside sickbay will see the precise evaluation. Commodore Bligh will receive a report stating you are fit for duty but under observation. I have to tell him that, and I will. You are dismissed, Kresar. I think you are needed in the science station for the rest of the day.'

ϡ

Kresar's frustration was, to a degree, understandable. Mostly, he and Spock had come to the same conclusions about the plant specimens, and wherever they had, Commodore Bligh was not challenging their results overly much. In the few – three, so far – cases they disagreed, he had run tests of his own, had listened to both their arguments, and had always sided with Spock. Now, they had the fourth case.

Kresar's claim it was a natural hybrid made sense. It was something that could be found out easily enough, and the Commodore had left to run the necessary tests. In the meantime, Kresar was glaring daggers at the plant.

'It's clear what he'll say,' the Caitian muttered finally. 'That you're right, that I'm wrong, but that I made a good effort.'

'I doubt it.' Spock answered. 'In the previous cases I was correct, in this one, I believe that you are.'

'Oh don't give me your nonsense. It doesn't suit a Vulcan to soft-soap someone.' The Caitian's eyes narrowed. 'Or is that wording beyond you?'

'I am familiar with the phrase.' Kresar rose to his feet and glared down at the seated Vulcan.

'Is there a problem, gentlemen?' Bligh asked. He stood in the door with his arms folded. Kresar rounded on him.

'Say it. Say it how your perfect boy here has nailed it while I am a failure.'

'Actually, I was going to say that you were right, it is a hybrid.'

'Liar! You only try to soothe me into trusting you. You'll take the first chance to see me executed!'

'There is no death sentence in the Federation,' Spock pointed out. It was high time some sense was brought back into this exchange, but whatever was going on in Kresar's mind, he was not finished. He did not even listen.

'You'll just shoot me like cattle. I'll vanish like those scientists on the planet. But I won't let you!' The Caitian grabbed one of the plants and flung it at Bligh. Spock, on his feet by now, saw his next move coming, noticed him tense for a jump, and vaulted over to table into his way to anticipate him. He knocked several plants to the floor in the process, but at this moment that was not his concern. Before Kresar could attack Bligh, Spock's fingers dug into the Caitian's shoulders, making him sink to the floor. The Commodore stared at the limp figure.

'What on earth got into him?' Spock pursed his lips.

'I do not know.' Shaking off his moment of incomprehension, Spock looked straight at Bligh. 'Request permission to bring Kresar to sickbay for examination.' Bligh sighed.

'Knock yourself out.'

ϡ

Kresar, strapped to the biobed, was a pitiful sight. It was, however, necessary. He had been screaming and thrashing at the top of his lungs until Mamad Kopty was done with his examination. After that, Kopty had dragged Leonard and T'Kray into the next room. 'Well?' was all he asked, and at least T'Kray wasn't certain if they could offer a satisfactory answer. Leonard raised his hands.

'I scanned him, but I couldn't possibly see this coming.'

'Me neither,' T'Kray said quickly.

'He has what I think is a strong allergic reaction,' Kopty said. 'I suggest when he calms down we inform him he will not continue with his plants.' McCoy frowned slightly.

'According to Spock, Kresar was scared out of his wits when he attacked, believed they were going to kill him. That doesn't sound like an allergy, it sounds like a psychosis.' A scream came from the next room and they darted back. Kresar was struggling against the restraints, his eyes darting between them at dizzying speed. T'Kray approached him, talking in what she hoped was a soothing tone.

'Calm yourself, Kresar. We are trying to help you.'

'No! Just let me go … I'll do all you say. I'll do the monitoring in the tower, all day.' She shook her head.

'I am sorry, but you cannot do that right now.' She turned to look at the two medics behind her. 'Even if there is no need for the monitoring, I cannot permit that he is given so much responsibility when he is clearly unhinged.'

'I'm not unhinged. I've calmed down again.' He sounded calm, but his eyes were still frantically searching them and the room.

'We shall judge that in time. Now you will rest.' Only now, realising he was not going to be released, Kresar stopped trying to wriggle out of the restraints.

'Can I at least have some water?' Leonard nodded.

'At once.' He walked over to the replicator and returned with a full glass. He exchanged a glance with T'Kray, who answered with a tiny nod. Leonard released the strap holding the Caitian's left arm. If he tried anything, it was up to her to stop him. Being a Caitian, he would be too fast for the two humans, but not for her.

T'Kray had honestly expected him to drink the water. If she had given it any thought, she would also have wondered if he might throw the glass, including its contents, at them. What she hadn't expected was that he would pour them over his own head.

'More,' Kresar rasped. When there was no reaction, he threw the glass to the floor. 'More! I need water, don't you get it? I need more!' Shaking his head, Kopty gave the poor creature a hypo full of sleep.

'What the hell is going on with him?' he asked loudly.

'Psychosis,' T'Kray said simply. 'We have to find out what exactly it is, but that I am sure of.' Kopty glared at them.

'Sort him out, then.' He left cursing in an incomprehensible tongue. T'Kray wrinkled her nose.

'Can we get out? The plant smell brought here from the science station is rather pungent.' Leonard frowned.

'I don't smell anything.'

'Vulcans …' He waved her away, leading the way to his office.

'I know. Females especially.' T'Kray followed him.

'Do you believe an allergy can trigger such a strong psychosis?' Leonard shrugged.

'We'll find out. You know what I wonder? How a Vulcan female can stand being in a small secluded room with me after a rather long exhausting day.'

'I do not find your individual scent unpleasant, Leonard. Especially compared to that of one of the plants.' He smiled, but only for a moment.

'There's something I need to ask you.' He locked the door behind them before facing her, obviously steeling himself. 'You have never tested me. You handed in a report based on … what?'

'On my knowledge of you from the mental contact we had on Dainam.'

'Not enough, too long ago.' She sighed.

'I am not going to let you fill in tests for three hours, evaluate them for six, and end up with something I already know.' Leonard swallowed.

'No.' When he took hold of her hand it was so unexpected she nearly jumped. There was a mix of emotions, none too ordered, among them anxiety and anticipation. Bright blue eyes captivated her gaze as he brought her hand up to his face. 'There's a faster way.'

'Len …' She let her hand hover, not allowing herself to touch. 'That … are you certain?'

'For this you don't have to go into a full meld. Small steps, right?' He smiled. 'Let me prove that I trust you. And you can be certain I'm not going to end up like Kresar any time soon. I have to … I have to get over myself, T'Kray. I promised you.'

* * *

_((If you haven't read Air, the last bit of exchange won't make much sense. In that case I will, for once, offer an outtime explanation, albeit an oversimplified one: I figure that McCoy would, given his history, have a serious problem with mind melds. I also figure that would be a problem for T'Kray. So there's that.))_


	6. And as for Thee, What Wilt Thou Do?

_((Chapter heading … dare I say it … is a line taken from an Arioso (which is basically a recitativo accompagnato) of Bach's St. John's Passion (_Mein Herz indem die ganze Wel)_. Given the amount of stuff this chapter encompasses finding something was tough as hell, and not for the first time I wonder why I bother and don't just _not_ write a chapter heading. Also, I could invent one. There was a time where I was reluctant to use quotes. Now I keep looking for them. O tempora, o mores!))_

* * *

Leonard's eyes were glued to the screen. It was obvious why this work was done in pairs. In the past half hour they had told approaching starships just why they had to dock manually, and for some reason, they had found that highly entertaining. One of the two people at the terminals had to communicate, the other had to see that nothing happened. That the computer was actually functional and going to prevent a catastrophe was comforting but the pressure was still there. Glancing to his left for a split second, he caught T'Kray smiling. 'What?' he asked softly.

'You look so concentrated.' Her answer was equally quiet. The red blinking light signifying that they had to control manually went out and didn't turn back on. 'Cristóbal de Morales to USS Marvel. Automatic control has been re-established. The computer will guide you now. T'Kray out.'

'Thank you, Morales,' the answer came with an amused tone. Leonard leaned back and stretched.

'Hell. How did anyone ever survive an entire shift of this?'

'Practice. Don't be too hard on yourself, Len. You are not trained for this, and neither am I. We will not excel in that area, and I for one am glad we do not have to. This isn't for everyone.'

'Clearly.'

'I actually think we're being tested.'

'Of course we are. We're tested for vigilance and that sort of stuff.' T'Kray thought for a moment.

'That's what they want us to think. It's what I would say if I were testing something different entirely. Frustration tolerance maybe.'

'Wouldn't that be an impossible scenario?'

'For us, with our backgrounds, this nigh on is. We're expected to perform at the level of those that usually do this kind of thing.' Slowly, a smile spread on Leonard's face.

'Interesting. Well, I guess we can relax a bit, then.' He glanced at the chronometer on the wall. 'Speaking of which, how about lunch? I think Jim and Spock have a break now, too.' T'Kray nodded.

'They would.'

The other two were already in the mess hall at their usual table. For once, Vral had joined them. He looked rather dejected, his ears drooping ever so slightly. Leonard couldn't blame him. 'How's Kresar doing?' he asked. Vral offered a baleful look.

'Same as before. I have no idea what's happening to him. He yelled at me, I wondered if he even recognised me.' T'Kray looked highly concerned.

'I shall see to him after this. Len, please tell STC I need to attend to a patient and will be a bit late.' He nodded. Vral frowned at his food, then pushed it away.

'Do you have any idea what is happening to him?' T'Kray took a few seconds to consider.

'I do not know what is causing his problems. We are working on that, not only the two of us, but really the entire sickbay personnel.' Vral's eyes widened.

'That bad?'

'We cannot say how bad it is, Vral. Only that we do not know how to help your brother.' Vral offered a curt nod.

'Excuse me, I'll go and see him again.' Leonard followed him with his gaze.

'Pour soul.' He took a deep breath. 'Well, here's a real problem and we're wasting time in that tower. Talk about frustration tolerance.' The door swished open and Doctor Kopty rushed to them, followed by two security officers. His face was sheet white, which was a very bad sign given his usually dark complexion.

'Kirk,' he said without preamble. 'This will get you into court martial.' Jim stared at him, obviously at a complete loss. Leonard gaped at his superior, trying to comprehend and process what he had heard. Jim was the first to find his tongue, even if his reply wasn't very eloquent.

'What?'

'You know what.' Jim and Spock exchanged a short glance.

'I … have absolutely no idea what I am being accused of. I haven't done anything.'

'You reported the transporter functional.' Jim blinked, then his mouth fell open and he paled visibly.

'No. No, I have done no such thing.'

'Yes you have, there's your signature on it! You didn't even have a right to sanction its use, that's Irina's job!'

'Signed it? Can I see that?' Kopty thrust a PADD into his face.

'That is not my handwriting,' Jim said evenly and with visible relief. 'The computer will prove that.' Kopty took a few deep breaths.

'Indeed it will.' He dropped into a chair next to Leonard and buried his face in his hand. 'Do you have any idea what happened?'

'I can imagine.'

'I just … These are the days I hate being a doctor.' Leonard felt with him. Examining bodies was never pleasant, and transporter accidents were particularly gruesome. He collected himself and looked at them. 'I'll find out who this was. They'll answer for it.' T'Kray answered in a quiet voice.

'They may not even know.' Kopty stared at her. 'I am done with my examinations. No-one seems to remember having tampered with the transporter or the shuttles in the first place. I am half convinced whoever did it was has no idea of what they did.' Kopty swallowed.

'I'll keep it in mind.' He started walking away, then turned back to face them. 'Hold on. There's a new rule for the planet. Don't leave the premises. Another pair of scientists have vanished. Our scans cannot find them, so a few of us were going to look for them and were told to use the engineering transporter. Well.'

ϡ

There were a number of things T'Kray had to keep in mind. One, Kresar was innocent, no matter what he had done. Two, there was an excellent chance he had something to do with the misinformation. Three, it might be anyone, and very likely was not him because in real life it was never that simple. Vral had left by the time she reached sickbay. Kresar was awake and very close to panic. When she got close, T'Kray felt the heat emanating from him. Caitians were warm, but not that warm. She hit the emergency button at the bed and wondered why Kresar hadn't already done so. The half minute it took Kopty to arrive seemed stretched. The doctor, still pale, glanced at Kresar. 'He's not well,' T'Kray said evenly. 'Feverish. But I don't know the first thing about Caitians.' Kopty nodded and ran a medical tricorder up and down Kresar's body, hovering over his throat for a while.

'How the hell …' He looked at her as though he expected an answer. 'How the hell does a perfectly healthy Caitian end up in a thyreotoxic crisis?' Whatever that was, it didn't seem to concern Kopty overly much. He started digging in a drawer, eventually producing a vial for a hypospray. 'Well. There you go, Kresar.' He looked up at T'Kray again. 'I mean … really.'

'I am not a medic, doctor,' she told him flatly.

'Good thing you got me here, or he'd be very dead very soon. Dangerous business that.' Kresar's head rolled to his side with his eyes closed. 'Yeah, rest. You know what, McCoy is done with his tower for today. Contact him, tell him I need him here. If Victor has any objections, he can have a piece of my mind.'

ϡ

Leonard stared at the results of Kopty's scan and shook his head. 'Maybe we just didn't know he had some sort of hyperthyreosis.' He looked up. 'I never ran a medical scan on him.' Kopty sighed.

'Anything similar with your test subjects?' Leonard shook his head, then he bit his lower lip.

'Wait. Yes. In one sample there was a rather high thyroliberin and thyrotropin level. It was one of the earliest samples I tested, and I had to take another after a while. There, the levels were normal. That's why I didn't think too much of it. Mind you, I did scan all the samples for TRH and TSH levels.'

'Who was it?'

'Commander Melczuk.' He frowned. 'Hyperthyreosis can lead to a certain degree of hysteria, but it doesn't alter a personality. T'Kray, did she appear at all stressed?'

'Of course she did. But no more than she should, given the fact that I tested her only a week after the first transporter accident.' Leonard nodded slowly. He walked over to the intercom and signalled engineering.

'Kirk here.'

'Hey, Jim. Any idea what happened?'

'None.'

'Listen. I need you and Melczuk up here. I've got to take a look at you eventually, and I need another blood sample from her.'

'She's not really in a cooperative mood,' Jim said quietly.

'Oh really. Not my idea anyway, Kopty's. He's not very cooperative either, you know, seeing how Kresar nearly died of something he wasn't supposed to have.' Leonard took a deep breath. 'Jim, don't force me to make it an order. McCoy out.'

ϡ

Jim expected to have to wait while Bones took a blood sample from Melczuk and scanned it, but instead, he was intercepted by T'Kray. The Vulcan let him fill in a form that was vaguely familiar. He was certain he had taken a similar test before his first command, something about five personality factors. This test was followed by various computer scenarios. In the end she merely said that he was stressed but otherwise fine and sent him to the next room.

When the door closed behind him, Bones raised his hand in greeting and kept talking to the computer for a moment. 'Sit down,' he said then. 'I'd need your hand.' He smiled vaguely. 'This is one of the few things that can't be done without a bit of pain. But you'll live.' He picked up a small metal plate and rammed the sharp end into Jim's middle finger. 'Sorry.' He squeezed, collecting a drop of blood with a dropper. Turning away, he fumbled with an apparatus. After a minute he shook his head at the result. When he sat back down, he allowed himself a sigh. 'You need to come back here tomorrow.'

'Why? Am I … Bones, am I …' His friend shook his head quickly.

'No, Jim. You're not going insane, and you're not ill. But your thyroid is a little overactive right now. Only very slightly, but that's what nearly killed Kresar. You haven't got it that bad, luckily, and the actual problem is probably not the thyroid, that's just an effect. But I can give you a hypo and you'll be fine.'

'Why did you need Commander Melczuk?' Bones tilted his head.

'What sort of answer do you think I can give you?' Jim's eyes widened.

'Nothing! Of course you can't. I … didn't think.' It was way too easy to fall into his usual routine with Bones. How could he forget that right now he couldn't just tell him whatever he found he needed to know about the staff? Who was he to even ask it?

'Jim, over the next few weeks you've got to listen into yourself. Or maybe Spock can help you. When you're … together, you meld, I assume.' Jim glanced towards the door, and Bones smiled. 'No-one here but us. Come on, you were never shy about a conquest. I know this is different, but still.' Jim smiled innocently. At least he thought he did.

'I'm getting a feeling I'm really here to be questioned.'

'Well, can you blame me?' The doctor grinned. 'But it's not just that. Look, I'm sure that there's a connection between Kresar's psychosis and the physical aspect. Only there was nothing physically wrong with him when he was brought here. That's new. And you have the advantage that there's someone who knows you, maybe better than you know yourself. Tell him what I told you. Tell him to let you know if there's something different.'

'I'll do that.' Bones leaned forwards, a glint in his eyes.

'Now … Jim … How do I ask that … is there a … difference?'

'Physically? Shouldn't you know that?' The doctor made a dismissive gesture.

'No, I know those. I meant … Jim, look, you know how I am about telepathy.' He understood.

'Nothing to fear, Bones. You won't feel like you're losing control or the sense of yourself. You'll just … you'll feel yourself and her. And it's brilliant.'

'Anything I need to know?'

'Nothing that would be news to you. Why aren't you asking T'Kray, anyway?' Bones flushed, the mere thought apparently outrageous. It was all Jim could do not to laugh.

'I can't do that. She's … We haven't … got there yet. She's too Vulcan to push me, and mind you, I'm glad about that, but by now I'm getting impatient with myself.' Jim sighed.

'Well. Let it happen, Bones. You can't compare this to a mind meld as you know it. Maybe she can, you know, simulate it to you. They cannot only read thoughts, can they, but also suggest. Ask her to let you experience what it would be like.'

'Bonding for beginners, eh?' Bones's face lit up. 'You know, maybe that's a good idea.' He lowered his voice. 'There's something else. Related though. Did Spock teach you any Vulcan?'

'No. He said something but didn't translate.'

'T'Kray said something the computer claims means thank you, back on Dainam. But the last is apparently not a word.'

'What was it?'

'It sounded like Lenkam, but I misheard the other too. Good thing the computer found enough similarities to offer a translation. Some language.'

'You have access to language files?' Bones grinned.

'Sure. Computer, Vulcan language dictionary.' The Computer announced itself ready. 'Lenkam.'

'No such word.' He shrugged.

'See? I just guess I misheard it.' Jim smiled.

'Small wonder. Spock ever tell you his last name?' Bones snorted.

'No, the computer on the Enterprise did. I thought it was broken. What was your Vulcan word? Maybe the computer knows it.' Jim opened his mouth and closed it again. He considered a moment before he spoke.

'I don't know Bones. I haven't the faintest idea what it meant, it might have been something he wouldn't want me to … repeat.' The smile on Bones's face grew a little wider.

'When exactly did he say it?' He laughed. 'Come on, chances are you got it wrong anyway.' Jim swallowed, reprimanding himself to let himself in for such a conversation in the first place. Then he saw the look on McCoy's face. Expectant and curious, yes. But there was more, something softer and more caring. Before he could stop himself, he repeated the word Spock had said to him.

'T'hy'la.' The computer searched for two seconds. The answer, when it came, was as clear and cold as one expected from a database. And yet, with every bit of the definition it told them, Jim's heart got closer to melting into a puddle right there.

'Friend. Lover. Lifelong companion. Blood brother or sister. Soulmate. Soul-brother or sister.' Jim felt Bones's eyes on him and met his gaze. The doctor spoke quietly.

'You look surprised. I'm not. Didn't you know that he loves you, Jim?' He swallowed.

'Yes. I knew. But … I have a feeling this is a huge word.'

'I'm still trying to get over the fact they even have such a word. Try and say it back, Jim, see how he reacts.' Jim's face split into a grin.

'Yes, I'll do that.' Bones's eyes narrowed slightly.

'While you're at it, ask him what my word means, will you? The context was completely innocent, so it can't be overly worrisome.'

'Have you tried asking T'Kray?' Bones huffed.

'Tried. All she did was chuckle and tell me to find out. Well, I'm doing that.' Still grinning, Jim rose.

'Very well. I'll …' The bleep of the intercom interrupted him. Bones rolled his eyes.

'McCoy here.'

'Kirk with you?' Bligh's voice asked.

'Yes, he was just leaving,' Bones answered, eyes fixed on Jim.

'Tell him he's to lead an away team to the planet. Time he earned some laurels. He can choose whom he takes. Four people, two of them security. Bligh out.'

* * *

_((Away team is another such term that's a TNG thing. TOS said landing party._

_The definition of T'hy'la is the one you get from the (previously mentioned) VLD.))_


	7. At Evening, Hour of Calm and Peace

_((Bach. St. Matthew Passion, an Arioso (_Am Abend da es kühle war)_. Before, I had __Break Out, O Beauteous Morning Light__, funnily enough. But that might come at one point anyway. You may go and listen to the arioso and copy and paste its mood. Also this chapter was the easiest to write so far. Oh, and today, now I start proofreading it's Monday evening, 16 December. Meaning last night was my last concert for the year, concluding a freakish first half of December. Meaning, in turn, I'll have more time until January. Yay!))_

* * *

The atmosphere in the forest was different. It was nothing he could point his finger at, however. Leonard was very quiet – a bad sign in itself. Jim was also quiet. Outwardly. His mind, however, was going in circles like a roundabout, thoughts chasing each other, each one with a number of jumbled emotions. Spock's mental shield was firmly in place, protecting him from the constant input through their bond. On the other hand, the shield made the bond undetectable for Jim, who was all the more nervous because of that. There was no good solution, however, for the moment. Spock made a mental note to seize the first opportunity to teach Jim whatever he could learn, starting with a basic shield. Leonard somehow had managed that all by himself, even if he couldn't lower it on command and hadn't established it consciously. But it was evidently possible for a human. Learning to feel their bond even when there was a shield in place was also something he could teach him.

He watched the back of Jim's head and found that what he did was actually unfair. The human had no control over this situation. Frowning slightly at what he was about to do – on Vulcan he would earn himself raised eyebrows and quite a lot of disapproval – he crossed the short distance between them while lowering his shield only slightly. His left hand curled around Jim's right arm and he halted him. 'Might I make a suggestion, Captain?' He felt clearly how the shorter man responded to the mental contact that was re-established.

'You input is always welcome, Mr Spock.'

'I believe we should return to the pond. It would be a point of interest for any scientist.' Jim looked in the direction of the small body of water. He turned back and looked up at Spock, a slow smile spreading on his face.

'What do you expect to find there?'

'I am not certain.'

'A hunch then? Very well.' He let Jim lead the way, following half a step behind him. He seemed calmer, and it struck him that his shielding had probably had the opposite effect to what he had intended. The emotional exchange was still a distraction, but right now that was not a problem. The sudden withdrawal had left the other man insecure, increasing the turmoil within him, thereby increasing Spock's need for a shield and so on. There was still some uncertainty on Jim's end of their link. Spock cradled the piece of Jim's mind ensconced in his.

_I am here with you, always._ The answer was nowhere near coordinated, but the waves of emotion calmed further. Jim turned, a look of surprise on his face.

'I … I know that. Thank you.' Leonard snorted.

'You're aware he didn't say anything, aren't you?' Colour crawled up Jim's neck, and the doctor grinned. 'What a way to talk behind people's back.' Trust McCoy to take the leaden weight of a situation like the one at hand. Sure enough Jim's eyes lit up with mischief.

'I'd never talk behind your back, Bones.' He paused, considering. 'No. I wouldn't. Spock, I have a question.'

'Yes, Captain?'

'Would you tell me what the word Lenkam means?' Spock raised an eyebrow.

'That depends on the language. In an endemic Andorian dialect it is a colour adjective describing a pale lilac blue with pink-yellow spots. In standard Endosian it is a determiner that is very hard to translate in your standard. In slightly informal language you could say its meaning is similar to your word thingy.'

'And what the hell is a determiner?' Leonard asked with a sceptical expression.

'A determiner is a constituent that occurs with a noun or noun phrase and serves to express the reference of that noun or noun phrase in the context.' Leonard glared at him and shook his head.

'Thanks, that clears it up.'

'You are welcome, doctor.' Before Leonard could flare, Jim laughed.

'Bones, he's just pulling your leg. What happened to the peace between you two?'

'It wasn't peace, just a ceasefire,' Leonard answered with a slight smile tugging at his lips. 'A little less gobbledegook, Spock?'

'A determiner is a part of a sentence, a word for example, that needs to be followed by a noun. An article is an example for a determiner.'

'Oh. Right.'

'It's not Endosian,' Jim said at last. 'Nor Andorian. We assumed it's Vulcan.'

'Which dialect?' Leonard threw up his arms.

'How should I know? T'Kray said it.' Spock allowed amusement to show in his eyes, knowing that both Leonard and Jim could read him well enough to see it. Their silent security man was the only one who kept his increasing frown. Their levity did not seem to agree with him.

'She said that to you?'

'Yes.'

'Then it is simple. I heard her call you Len. The suffix -kam is a diminutive, but not a condescending one. A term of endearment, so to speak. Something preserved for your child, a foster child, or a bondmate. Or someone who might become just that. Since T'Kray is your senior, she can use it for you but not the other way round. If you wish to reciprocate you can say ashal-veh or tal-kam. Neither would be considered strictly appropriate by Vulcan society, but I am very certain that she has no such qualms if she said something so very familiar.' For once, the doctor was lost for words. Jim smiled.

'You look surprised, Bones. I'm not,' he said, earning himself a mock glare.

ϡ

Jim forced himself to keep his gratitude towards the other two for dispersing his gloom under a lid. He wondered if his attempt at shielding made any difference for his Vulcan or if he made matters worse by focussing so hard on keeping his thoughts and feelings to himself. Or maybe it made no difference at all, which was likely the case. He could constantly feel Spock, the short period in which the Vulcan had protected himself from Jim's rather violent emotional state aside, and that gave him immense comfort. He had to control himself, however. Not only because he needed to keep his head clear, but also because he didn't want to cause his bondmate harm. He rolled the word around in his head and couldn't keep the smile off his face. There were no words to describe how happy he was.

It hadn't been hard to convince Bligh that Spock was more able to defend them if needed than some ensign. The most likely outcome of this search party was nothing at all. The scanners hadn't found anyone outside the building, and it was very unlikely that they would be more successful. But still, they couldn't just abandon two men. That aside, this was the third time that something of the sort had happened. The first time they had vanished without a trace. The second group of three had contacted the Morales and perished in the transporter. The third pair was also just gone, swallowed by the ground it seemed.

After the signal from Bligh, he had asked Spock to join him in the transporter room and all but dragged a reluctant Bones there by his sleeve. Bligh had taken his curt explanation why one security man was sufficient at face value, confirming that a doctor and a scientist couldn't do any harm. It was clear that Jim was the least required. Why he was here eluded him. 'Mr Spock, have you been able to make anything of the bacteria you gathered earlier?'

'I have. They are single cell organisms, and they are not bacteria. I would compare them to ferns in certain stages if I had to describe it in words that are not … gobbledegook, as the Doctor so eloquently put it.'

'I don't assume they can make a person disappear.'

'Negative, Captain.' Jim nodded and clapped his hands together.

'So there it is. We are here to find two missing scientists. I'll be honest with you. I don't think we can. The scanners don't pick up readings outside of the science station, and I doubt we will. What we can do – maybe – is find out what happened to them and stop it from happening again.' He lowered his voice slightly. 'Four of us have come down here, and I fully intend to return with the same headcount. Be careful, don't leave the group, and do what I say and we'll be back up at the Morales in no time at all.'

ϡ

Watching the computer compare the results was not the most exciting thing in the world, but at least it left T'Kray with time to think. She had enough to consider, after all. There were the test results from Kresar. They seemed all right, medically he was cleared, and there was no reason to keep him in sickbay. Whatever had been the matter with him, it was over. She was going to speak to him one last time, but she was certain he would be all right.

Then there was Leonard. The man was down on the planet, and T'Kray couldn't stop her thoughts from wandering to him. Wondering what she would do if he did not come back. She wouldn't even know it until someone told her – a thought that was almost unbearable and not something she was ready to deal with. He was trying so hard to open his mind to her, and there was success. Quite a lot actually. But in moments like this, that didn't help. Spock and James had had a connection even before the actual bond had been formed, something that had developed over decades of a deepening friendship.

The fact remained, however, that T'Kray cherished Leonard. Enough to grant him the time he needed to adjust to the idea of someone else constantly in his mind. She understood him and admired him for even considering to let her in. And he did more than consider, he was convinced that this was what he wanted. The man was sincere and dedicated. It was a matter of time, and she was nothing if not patient.

The bleep of the computer informed her that her results were ready. She saved them before leaving for the room to which Kresar was as yet confined. He was no longer tied, unhappy to be there, but not running away. Another good sign. When she entered, he rolled his eyes. 'Are you the one insisting that I can't leave yet?'

'No. How are you?'

'Bored sick.' T'Kray smiled at the Caitian. His whiskers were twitching slightly, indicating his restlessness. 'I want to get back to my work. I want to apologize to the Commodore.' He halted and blinked at her. 'They won't let me stay here after that. I attacked a senior officer.'

'Yes, but you were ill. No-one is going to use that against you, least of all Commodore Bligh. He called twice and asked how you were doing. He understands that you were not yourself. I made that very clear from the start.' The Caitian nodded, looking grateful. 'You are allowed to leave. I looked at your results, and there seems nothing wrong. Doctor Kopty said if I see fit I can declare you fit for duty. I hereby do so. Return to your station, Ensign.' Kresar's eyes went wider with every word she said until he was positively beaming at her. She still smiled after him when the intercom beeped at her.

'Sickbay,' she said simply.

'This is the tower. We need you up here, T'Kray. The computer has ceased to work and we need to control manually. All traffic. Kopty is informed, you can leave.' The Vulcan felt her jaw drop.

'I don't know the first thing about STC apart from messing around a bit.' She bit her tongue, realising she hadn't spoken quite as clinically as she normally did on the job.

'You were more effective than some of our own. Hurry.'

ϡ

Late at night it had been nice and warm on Mavenow. Now it was hot and humid and the barometric pressure seemed too high. That last might be subjective, but Leonard still didn't like it. The medical tricorder he had was nothing like the ones he was used to. It could do a lot more things than those he knew, and he needed to learn how to operate them. He knew a good portion in theory, but that didn't mean he could actually use them as efficiently as he should.

The lake had been a good starting point. The scientists had been here, that much was clear from the footprints in the soft ground. However, following their traces was increasingly difficult. Spock was still quite good at spotting signs of people moving through, but even for the Vulcan it would soon be impossible.

Leonard had to admit that the Vulcan was a paragon of professionalism. Granted, the temperature was very likely quite comfortable for the desert-bred scientist, but the humidity most certainly was not. A warm drop of rain landed on Leonard's nose with annoying precision, and less than ten seconds later, thick raindrops made their way through the leaf canopy overhead. 'Brilliant,' he said under his breath. 'Just great.' Spock was entirely unperturbed.

'I have never understood the human capability to complain about something as unswayable as the weather.'

'Aren't you supposed to hate water?' Spock tutted.

'Another thing I do not comprehend. Why you believe we dislike water. It is a rare good on Vulcan and highly appreciated.' He stopped walking and looked around. 'The trail seems to end here. I cannot see any signs that they moved further.'

'Well, we have to guess then,' Jim said. Spock looked at him.

'Negative Captain. They have not moved away from here.' Leonard shook his head.

'So they grew wings and flew away?'

'I highly doubt that.' The Vulcan knelt on the moist ground. 'I do not have a better explanation, however.'

'Ockham's razor, then. If they haven't moved, they must still be here. They can't just dissolve into nothing.' He remembered vaguely a teacher in school who had told them that everything, including people, had its natural frequency, and that reproducing that frequency would annihilate said object or person. He was a grown man by now and knew things weren't that simple and that this was in and of itself a stupid thing to tell adolescents, but the thought that something of that description might have happened to four men still made him shiver despite the heat.

'That seems to be the logical conclusion, doctor,' Spock interrupted his reverie. Struck by a sudden inspiration, Leonard changed the settings of the medical tricorder to something more similar to an ordinary one. What with Spock officially being a civilian – and Bligh being less lenient about regulations than Kopty – he hadn't been able to bring one.

'What the hell …' He stared at the results with disbelieve. 'Spock, will you look at this?' The Vulcan looked over his shoulder. One eyebrow travelled up in slow motion.

'Interesting.'

'Did you find something, Bones?' Leonard and Spock exchanged a glance.

'I haven't the faintest idea,' the doctor said at last. 'There,' he said then, passing the tricorder to Spock.

'I am not entirely familiar with the settings.' Pride washed over Leonard in a tidal wave at the admission that he knew something Spock did not. He smiled.

'There, this one. You can turn off everything separately, searching for a wider variety of things. Right now I looked for … well, structure, mainly. A skeleton, no matter if there's a person to go with it.'

'And this has picked something up?'

'It has picked up four … well, skeletons, but the signal is somewhat muffled. Now that doesn't mean there's nothing else left, but it proves they're still here.' Jim stood less than an arm's length before him.

'Where, Bones? Can that thing lead us?' He bridled.

'What do you think this is, a corpse detector? I checked if there's something with certain properties in the vicinity, it says yes, and that's it.' He took a deep breath. 'Sorry. I just … I don't know.' Spock handed the tricorder back.

'I believe it can. But I also think it is you who should find out how.'

ϡ

By the time Leonard was satisfied with the settings, the sun had started to sink, turning the light into the strange purplish colour once again. The blue component wasn't as strong as it had been at night, but that would change in a few hours, he assumed. Spock had helped him, and he couldn't help thinking the Vulcan would have been able to solve the problem a lot quicker. He was infinitely grateful that he hadn't done so. This was exactly what he needed to learn. Now he had an opportunity to see how well he was faring, and he found it wasn't all that bad.

'So. Now let's see,' he muttered more to himself than the others. Still, Spock hovered less than a step behind him, Jim was positively leaning into him, peering at the instrument. They would travel slowly with the less than ideal equipment, but it was better than nothing.

They didn't have to go far. The tricorder halted them before a rather peculiar tree. It had a thin looking orange bark and looked much like a willow. The signal was still dull, but it claimed they stood at the right spot anyway. Leonard gave an exasperated sigh. 'Let's go back up to the space station, this is no good. Something's wrong with the settings, and either I just can't get them right or we need a standard tricorder.'

'The settings are as they should be,' Spock confirmed his suspicion that he knew precisely how to make this thing work exactly as he wanted it. 'The result is disconcerting but clear.'

'Then there's someone under that tree? Or on it?' Jim asked, looking up.

'I do not think so.' The Vulcan ran a hand over the bark. For a moment he closed his eyes before he violently jerked away. He settled down quickly and looked straight at Leonard. 'Remember Ockham's razor, Doctor McCoy. If the settings are correct, and if the tricorder is pointing you directly at this tree, what is the simplest conclusion?'

* * *

_((The definition of determiner is almost a word-perfect copy from wikipedia, only with one more technical term. The second explanation is an over-simplification that makes the almost-linguist in me cringe as much as Spock must at such an unscientific definition. A determiner with the meaning of thingy would be fun, I think. An extremely indefinite article or some such._

_Again I go against fanon: It makes no sense that Vulcans should shy from water. No-one ever said that in the series. Certainly not in TOS, and I doubt they did in the others._

_Spock's 'other name', as Leila Kalomi put it, is mentioned in one of the books, it seems. Memory Beta seems to treat it as his actual first name, but since Sarek is called Sarek, it makes no sense to me. I decide Vulcan first names are simple enough, while last names are a mess. And I'm not using non-canon anyway, so it's up to me. Leila was vague enough to stick with my theory, so here's to that.))_


	8. There Was an Old Man in a Tree

_((The chapter heading is from a song by Màtyas_ _Seiber. I feel duly ashamed for my choice, but I actually had the chapter heading before the chapter and I just can't resist. Yes, I am sometimes horrible.))_

* * *

Leonard had never given much thought to how it would feel to swallow a thin glass plate that would break in his gut, cutting him open from within and killing him slowly but surely. If he had done that, he might have come up with a similar imagined sensation to what was going on inside him the moment it hit him what the tree before him really was. He raced through denial, which had never been something he indulged in, facing the truth with a dry mouth and a wrenching sensation in his insides. He was lost. Completely and utterly lost, unable to even conceive of a solution. All colour gone from his face, he had set to finding the other three structures. Not that they could do anything. They could only note where the … trees, he had to think about them as trees … were. Two of them were nothing but dead wood with no leaves. He felt tears threatening to force their way to the surface but fought them bravely.

Their security man had run a hand over the tree when he had explained dispassionately that the men were not gone but that they had somehow turned into the surrealistic, their bones still in there, their muscles transformed into wood, skin into bark. After a moment of silence the poor soul had been violently sick. Jim had spoken to him in a quiet voice while Spock contemplated the first tree in a silent reverie and gave Leonard the time and space to find the others.

When he returned, the surreality of the situation was still eating at him, but he thought he could trust himself with speech again. Spock looked at him, his expression distant but gentle enough. 'What manner of transportation do you recommend, Doctor?' He stared at the tree and couldn't resist the urge to place a hand on it. It felt very soft, and upon closer inspection there were smalls hairs on it. He shuddered and pulled away.

'I'm a doctor, not a botanist,' he replied. His voice was his own again, but nowhere near as brisk as he had meant to be. 'Spock … how?' The Vulcan shook his head without an answer. 'That's what I thought. Two of them are dead. I suppose the first two.' He took a deep breath. 'Someone should … look after them. I suggest they be brought to the space station, the tree house. And you people must look after them. I know I can't. This isn't my job.'

'Do you think this can be … reversed, Bones?' Leonard heard the plea in his friend's voice. He shook his head, then shrugged.

'God, Jim, how should I know? Yesterday I'd have told you this isn't possible. So how do I know if someone can undo it?' He cleared his throat and stared at the tree. 'I can tell you one thing, though. I can't. This isn't a medical condition. Maybe it's a curse.'

'I doubt that, Doctor McCoy.' He glared at the Vulcan.

'Do you, Spock? I'll tell you something. It's as likely as anything. We shouldn't be having this conversation, because something like this isn't supposed to happen in the first place. I don't know anything even remotely similar, and I've seen and heard a lot of very strange things in my time. But this … this!' He gestured uselessly at the tree and refrained from finishing the sentence when Jim put a hand on his shoulder.

'It's all right, Bones. Maybe there really is a first time for everything.' He sighed and bumped his fist against his communicator. 'Kirk to Cristóbal de Morales space station … Four to beam up.'

ϡ

Jim led the way to the science department, listening into himself. He found hope, present because Bones wasn't entirely sure there was no way to help the two men that were still alive. He also found an urge to do … something. He had an idea what that would be, since sleep was out of the question. Next, he proceeded to come up with a plan just how to tell Victor Bligh what had happened.

When he stood before the Commodore, however, Jim felt distinctly lost. The taller man looked at them all in turn. 'I take it you found something, and judging from your expressions I think it's not good news.' Jim took a deep breath.

'We found all four scientists. They have … Something seems to have … transformed them into trees. Two of them have since … deceased.' He knew how ridiculous it sounded and wondered if Bligh would believe them.

'Excuse me?' the man asked hoarsely.

'He's not making a joke, Commander,' Bones helped out. 'We have no explanation. I suggest they be brought up here and tended to. Finding out what happened and how to stop it in the future will be the job of the science department. I'm certain Doctor Kopty will agree with me that this isn't something that can be handled by the medical staff.' Bligh looked at Spock.

'What do you say?'

'I agree with the doctor.' Bligh nodded slowly before addressing Jim again.

'What would your order be, if this were your responsibility?'

'I would order Mr Walter to take a couple of days off and have a few words with T'Kray to help leave this mess behind him. I'd order the two surviving scientists to be brought here like Doctor McCoy suggested. I'd order Mr Spock to work on them and find out what happened. I'd also tell him to find a way to undo this.'

'If there isn't a way?' Jim smiled vaguely.

'He'd let me know, but not unless he's a hundred percent certain.'

'Mr Walter, tell us who you really are, will you?' Walter swallowed.

'Commander Siegfried Walter of Starfleet Academy. Captain Kirk, Commander Melczuk reported that minor knowledge gaps in modern engineering aside, she declares you ready for duty, if you desire to leave. According to regulations, I came to see for myself, since your year at the station isn't anywhere near complete. I must say, you all impressed me. All three of you can take your uniforms.' Bligh nodded.

'Which leaves only one of our trainees in civilian clothing. Ah, just a matter of time, this isn't a competition.' Bligh sighed. 'This was a test, maybe, but it turned out to be much more serious than anticipated. I'll do as you would have, Captain. Commander, do you require rest or are you such a good actor?' Walter's expression was that of someone who had bitten into a lemon.

'I'm a very bad actor. Today I was reminded why I prefer a job at the Academy. I'll take up on your offer.'

'Our psychologist is currently in the tower, but she'll be available soon. She will contact you.' Bligh shook his head. 'Get some sleep. All of you, I'm sure you need it. Spock, I'll see the two scientists are brought here. Tomorrow you're on duty in the tower. As are you, Doctor McCoy. Captain, you're in engineering as usual. Good night.'

ϡ

Sleep was certainly a good idea. In theory. In practice, it was very difficult since every time Jim closed his eyes he saw that tree burnt to the inside of his lids, and with that came the feeling of falling into a pit as it struck him what that tree really was. Swearing under his breath, Jim ordered the light to 25 % and padded over to the desk. He picked up the nara capsule and studied it. 'Open,' he told it. As he had expected, the small item was unimpressed. 'Who made you? Melczuk? Irina? Irina Melczuk? Engineering …' He shook his head. These things were sophisticated enough to be indifferent to voice and stress, the word itself was what mattered. It could also be a sentence, but that was unlikely. He let the small item slip back onto his desk and buried his face in his hands. His research hadn't told him a way to force these things open without destroying them, maybe that truly was impossible.

_Are you awake?_ The thought drifted into his consciousness, very cautious so as not to disturb him if he was sleeping. Smiling, Jim tried to answer. He knew Spock would receive something, but it was probably not very articulate. That still didn't work if he wasn't full of adrenaline.

It took less than a minute for the Vulcan to enter his room. He sat down on the second chair and wordlessly took Jim's hands in his. The contact took some of the shock away, soothing him into a resemblance of peace. 'What would I do without you?' he asked finally.

'You would spend a sleepless night sitting here until exhaustion claimed you. It would not be a first time, either. But if I can assist you, why should I not do so?'

'I wonder what's in these capsules. I just can't help feeling this is important somehow.' Still holding Jim's hands, Spock looked at the small item.

'I do not know a more effective approach than trial and error. Nara capsules are usually very safe.' He looked back up at Jim, his expression serious. 'I want to start teaching you how to construct a basic shield.' Jim's face fell.

'My own thoughts keep you from resting!' Spock shook his head quickly.

'No. It is not for my benefit I want you to learn this. If you can shield yourself, I can lower my own shields. Then you can still sense me but monitor what you transmit.'

'I want to learn communicating outside life-threatening situations.' Spock smiled minutely.

'You will, but this is easier.' Spock's thumbs were caressing the back of his hands and his voice dropped to a low rumble. 'Do not believe that I want you out of my mind. Nothing could be further from the truth. Eventually, you will have a constant shield that will keep more acute emotional struggles away from me. It will grant you privacy of your own mind. You will also be able to speak to me despite the shield.' Jim looked at his Vulcan and frowned slightly.

'How can you know?'

'I know that Leonard has a very rigid shield. I know you can communicate in certain situations. It means that humans in general and you and him in particular are able to do these things intuitively, to a degree. With the guidance of a Vulcan, you can learn to control them. Jim, you realise that the ability to shield will also protect you from external influences. It would be very hard to read your mind or to force you to do anything against your will. The latter is difficult as is. You are a stubborn man.' Jim smiled, turning his hands so that their palms were pressed together.

'Only you can make that sound like a compliment.'

'Close your eyes, Jim.' He obeyed without hesitation. 'What I will teach you is something you may not overdo without meditation. I shall help you with both. Focus inwards. On me, if you wish, on our bond.' Jim did so. The link between them was a place of love and warmth, something that had been there for a long while and had helped him survive when he thought he was entirely forsaken. He smiled involuntarily, feeling the strength of their tie. _Good._ Spock had spoken in his mind only, and this time he knew it. _You need not draw energy if you have basic meditation skills. For now, I shall provide you. If you had no time to meditate, you will need to find strength in you. I believe that you will do that automatically, given your ability to remain functional in a crisis._ _Now focus on what you want: a semi-permeable shield that allows communication and a sense of the other. Now take the energy you gathered and fit it to your body like a second skin. Open your mind to me, Jim, I will do this for you to help you feel what I mean._ Spock's mind guided him, like an adult might guide a child's hand in its first attempt to write. Something calm and warm and in a way very much Spock expanded from within him to the confines of his body until it somehow locked in place there. He still felt Spock as if nothing had changed. He felt the other mind withdraw and opened his eyes.

'I don't feel different.'

'No, because there is no threat. In addition to that, I constructed the shield for you this time. You should be able to find it like you find my mind in you. Focus on yourself, but this time do not look for our link. Look for something that is not part of you.' Jim licked his lips and listened into himself. He forced himself to ignore the beacon in his mind that was Spock, finding something else instead, a manifestation of belligerence and defiance.

'I think I have it.'

'Good. Do not break it, let it vanish. Evaporating would be a good picture, if you require one.' Jim followed the instruction and felt relief. Of what, he was not certain. 'Good. For now, this will do.' Spock stood and pulled Jim up by the hands he was still holding. He tugged him further into an embrace. 'You should try and sleep, Jim.'

'I know. I don't think I can.'

'There is a practice that is known to cause human males to fall asleep,' Spock said quietly. Jim pulled away slightly and saw the glint in the eyes of his bondmate. He smiled up at him.

'Another mind technique, Spock?' The Vulcan pressed his forehead to Jim's, trapping his eyes with his own.

'Not entirely.' Jim couldn't keep the fully fledged grin from his face at the serious tone belied by the minute change in Spock's expression. Jim stood on tiptoe and spoke directly into one pointed ear.

'No idea what you might mean. I believe you will have to show me.'

ϡ

After a night of meditation but no sleep, T'Kray found herself walking down to engineering with a certain degree of reluctance. She was shadowed by two security men because Kopty had insisted. Taking a senior officer into custody wasn't something she was certain she was prepared to do, but the fact remained that medical personnel sometimes had this ungratifying task. For her, that moment had come. And there was no way to pawn it off on a medic. It was a psychological problem, after all.

When she entered, James and Vral greeted her, the former with a bright smile. For once, she didn't return it. 'I need to see Commander Melczuk.' The smile on James's face faltered at her detached tone.

'Sure. She's in her office. T'Kray, what …'

'Rumours will spread without my help. Please understand that I cannot give you details.' He nodded.

'Certainly.' She could feel his eyes on her while she walked over to the office. The door slid open as she approached.

Melczuk stared at her and the guards, a frown creasing her forehead in slow motion. 'Good morning. What can I do for you?' Stepping out of the sensor range, T'Kray let the door close behind her before she spoke.

'Commander, we have proof that you have announced that the transporter in engineering has been repaired, which was not true. By doing so, you sent three men to their deaths.'

'I signed no such thing.' Melczuk sounded convinced enough, and T'Kray believed that she really had no idea. It didn't make this easier.

'I am afraid you have. The computer has verified the signature on the PADD as yours.' She folded her hands in front of her. 'Please, Commander, do not make this more difficult than it has to be. Follow me to the sickbay.'

'Sickbay?' Melczuk was hoarse, crestfallen. 'Sickbay, Lieutenant? I should think the brig, if you assume I murdered three men.'

'I believe you have no recollection of the events.'

'You think I'm insane.'

'No. I think something is happening to people. Not just you, Commander, many others as well. This one piece of the puzzle we can pinpoint. We're nowhere nearer finding out who sabotaged the transporter and the shuttles. Or the computer in the tower.'

'Why not put the blame on me, as well?' T'Kray pursed her lips.

'You certainly have the required knowledge.' Melczuk deflated visibly.

'If you weren't a Vulcan, I'd fight this, you know. But you don't lie or damage people's reputations on a whim. I'll … I'll follow.' The tall woman sounded surprised at her own words. T'Kray smiled.

'There is no reason for concern. If we find that you were under the same influence as so many others, there will be no repercussions.' Melczuk shook her head.

_'__I'm not certain that I'll be able to see it that way. If I killed these people – no, Lieutenant, don't say anything. If I killed these people, I wonder if I'll be able to tell myself it wasn't my fault. Lead the way.'_


	9. I Cry to Thee, Thou See to Me

_((I … hate … chapter headings. With a fervour. A line from Britten's A Hymn to the Virgin, for lack of anything else. It makes sense. Sort of. Or so I say.))_

* * *

Leonard tilted his chair back, leaning against the wall. 'Anyone have any idea when this thing works again?' Spock shrugged. Until their break they had been working together, but frankly, it had been mostly Spock working. Leonard was bad at this STC business at the best of times, never mind now the pointless test had turned into something very real.

'Whenever Commander Melczuk finds someone to dispatch for the tower to perform the necessary repairs.' Leonard snorted.

'Not in a while then.'

'Why?' He sighed, cursing his quick tongue. He lowered his voice to a whisper.

'Well, I guess you'll hear anyway, so I might as well tell you. T'Kray's in engineering now, telling her that she's under arrest.' Spock nodded.

'The signature clearing the transporter for usage?'

'Yeah.' One of the men at the consoles raised his voice above the usual quiet speech, and Leonard looked over. Suddenly the man sprang to his feet.

'No, no, not there!' Spock was there a second later, taking over communications.

'Morales to Connington. Do you read us?' He waited, frowning at the monitor. 'Morales to Verdi. Please respond.' After a few moments he shook his head. 'I do not believe that they receive us.'

'And I do not believe they're in control,' Leonard added breathlessly, watching the progress of the two ships on the monitor with increasing dread. 'Oh my God, Spock.'

'I cannot help them, Leonard.' He swallowed past the lump in his throat as the two vessels slowly drifted towards each other and the station. He braced himself for the moment of collision, but was still knocked to the floor. The utter silence of the accident made it clear it had to have happened somewhere far from them. 'Spock? Are you good?'

'I am all right.' He scrambled back to his feet and found Spock picking himself up. A trickle of green ran down his forehead, and he wiped it away with something close to impatience. It took less than ten seconds for the intercom to signal.

'Tower, report.'

'Spock here, Commodore. Only minor injuries, as far as I can see. We lost contact with the ships, and they lost control, it appears.'

'I won't ask how because I don't have the bloody time. But I'll ask eventually. I've set up a signal forbidding all ships from approaching at all. Not that I think those can be received. Send McCoy to sickbay. Engineering's one big wreck, I don't even know if anyone's alive there or on those vessels.' Slowly, the words made their way into Leonard's head.

'No,' he whispered, looking at Spock. The Vulcan had his eyes closed for a moment, when he looked at him his voice was rough.

'Jim appears to be unconscious, but he is alive. I cannot ask him about T'Kray.'

'I've got to … I've got to go there and …'

'Wait. Spock to Commodore Bligh, please come in.'

'Bligh here.'

'Is it possible to enter engineering?'

'Not right now, we're working on it and I'll send people in. You can help there, if you wish. It's not like you can do much in the tower right now. Bligh out.'

'Spock, we can't just stand by and wait.'

'No, indeed. You have to go to sickbay and …'

'I'm going in there, I'm not leaving them!' Spock took a step closer to him, his expression tired.

'I apologise in advance Doctor, but there is no time for arguing.' The Vulcan placed his hand on his shoulder and the world went black.

ϡ

Jim blinked, trying to ignore the much too bright light. For a moment he wondered why he had woken up, then he understood it was the rather loud voice right next to him, thick with its ever-present dialect. 'No! You just don't do this kind of thing! What if you'd accidentally knocked me out longer? Some of these people might have died in that time. Jim might have! I could have helped.' The response was calm, maybe with a minute hint at exasperation.

'You have helped where you are best, Leonard. I could not have replaced you here, nor you me in engineering. You do not have my strength. It would have taken you much longer to carry people out of immediate danger.'

'You could have talked to me, man!'

'I tried. You were not listening.'

'Now I'll tell you something, you son of a … an ambassador …'

'I have a feeling that is not what you were going to say.' Jim heard the slight anger, but he knew Bones well enough to bet he wasn't going to stop.

'Prove me wrong,' the doctor said coldly.

'I could, Doctor, don't make me.'

'Spock!' T'Kray's voice cut the air like a knife. Against his will, Jim opened his eyes and looked over at McCoy and Spock, facing each other. The former was sheet white, and Jim was ready to bet his right hand he hadn't been before. T'Kray, was approaching quickly, one finger pointed at Spock. A rush of rapid Vulcan streamed from her, the tone very unamused. 'Ish-veh watosh heh rim dorli. Nah-uh vi ish-veh.' Spock looked at T'Kray for less than a second before turning back to the Doctor, who shook himself visibly and for once seemed to decide for de-escalation.

'Yes, Spock, you could. But I know you wouldn't. Still, what a thing to say.'

'Doctor, I …'

'Save it.' Bones turned to walk away, shaking his head.

'Leonard.' He froze and turned very slowly. 'I apologise. I should not have said this at all, and certainly not to you.' The doctor swallowed.

'I'm going to forgive you eventually, but right now I can't look at you.' Spock prepared himself to reply when his eyes strayed to Jim.

'Jim!' He was at his side a moment later. 'Do not move. You have a concussion.'

'And a headache that doesn't get better from people yelling.' Bones, his anger forgotten, was on the other side of the bed and groaned.

'Oh, I'm so sorry. I just … He nerve-pinched me.' He lowered his voice. 'It wasn't entirely unjustified, if I think about it, but still.' Jim looked for T'Kray and found her where she had been, still ready to breathe fire.

'What did she say to you, Spock?' The Vulcan chanced a glance at the psychologist glaring at his back.

'That what I said was vile and dishonourable. That I should think about who I was talking to. She was right, of course.' Jim gave them both a frown.

'Don't fight. You were past that, but recently you started getting at each others' throats like at the very beginning.' Bones smiled vaguely.

'It never really changed.'

'It did. It became closer to banter than actual fighting.'

'Perhaps it is time you tested you own blood again, Leonard. And perhaps mine as well.' For a second Bones looked like he was going to explode, then he deflated visibly.

'Perhaps, Spock? Definitely I should think. But not now. Sorry, Jim, can't sit here and hold your hand. I've lingered too long already.'

'Can I be of assistance, Doctor?' Spock's conscience nagging him was clear in his voice and his eyes, and Bones smiled.

'Yes, Spock, you can. But take a bit of time, will you? At the moment we've got it under control.'Jim watched him go, then turned to Spock.

'What … Spock, what happened?' The Vulcan cast about for a chair, found one, and sat down next to Jim.

'The tower lost contact with two approaching ships. The ships, it seems, lost control and collided very close to the space station. The damages were mainly in the engineering section, a part of which had to be sealed off. T'Kray and Melczuk were already far enough away to be unharmed. You hit your head on a flat surface. Minor injuries were reported from almost all stations.'

'Great. I'm not in pain, though, so can I leave?'

'The doctor gave you a hypospray, but he never said that you could return to your quarters. But I have been able to bring you something that might distract you.' Jim sat up slowly and watched Spock produce one of the nara capsules from the drawer. 'I handed the other one to Leonard. He will ask Commander Melczuk if she has any idea what unlocks them.'

'You think she placed them there?' Spock replied with a very un-Vulcan shrug.

'I do not know.'

ϡ

Leonard took a moment to lean back in his chair and close his eyes. What a way to spend a day. The injuries they could treat were minor, most of them. The more severe cases had been taken by Kopty, and it reminded him how much he missed being his own master. Not that he liked horrible injuries in the lower abdomen, but he had to fight the urge to check if the surgery had been done right. The CMO, however, would certainly not appreciate this. He knew he wouldn't have.

What got to him where the people they hadn't been able to bring to the sickbay, those trapped in the part of engineering that was now sealed and no one could enter. They were dead already, likely had been at once, but still, it nagged at him on a primal level.

Spock had just bandaged someone with an abrasion and handed the patient over to T'Kray, and Leonard shook the thought off. 'Come here, Spock,' he said softly. A human wouldn't have heard him, and he wanted to give the Vulcan a chance to pretend that he hadn't noticed either. For a moment he seemed to hesitate, then he approached with a swift pace. 'Now everything's buzzing around us and we actually have nothing that needs our immediate attention, we can take and test those blood samples.' When no objection came, he took that for an agreement.

'I really have dishonoured myself,' Spock said instead. McCoy tilted his head.

'We'll talk about this when I've got the …' The computer beeped, and Leonard looked intently at the screen. He sighed. 'I, for one, am not all right. Now you.' It took three seconds before he knew that Spock was neither. 'You're affected, too. Quite strongly, in fact. Who'd have thought it could happen?'

'I have a thyroid, Doctor.'

'You don't say. I just thought for once your green blood would protect you. Well, I'll alter the medication a bit for you, so you don't complain about stomach aches again. Nothing we can't handle. And it does change how I look at that conversation out there.' He smiled. 'Don't be too hard on yourself. With your permission I'll tell T'Kray where this came from. I don't want her thinking about you like that.' Spock nodded curtly.

'Permission granted. Thank you, Leonard.'

ϡ

Spock had headed over to the science department once it was clear he could be of no more use in sickbay. He was half glad to leave the place behind. Guilt was coursing through him, and he was as unable to quench it as he had been unable to keep the threat to McCoy from getting out of his mouth. Even to think of such a thing was abominable, never mind uttering it. He knew that Leonard was struggling to allow the mental closeness T'Kray needed, and he hoped his words had not damaged what success he had had so far. 'Spock?' He had entered the greenhouse, he realised, so lost in thought that he just stood there now.

'Doctor McCoy will give you a full report of the casualties this evening, Commodore. Has anything been found about the trees?' Bligh shrugged.

'Ask Kresar, he's working on it. I'm still trying to find out what to do about the problems in Engineering.'

'Of course.' He found the Caitian at the trees, a tricorder in his left hand, ears drooping, and his hackles raised – literally. 'Kresar?' The Caitian let out a sound between a growl and a sigh.

'They're dying. They aren't getting enough nourishment.' Spock thought for a second before he headed back to Bligh.

'Commodore, is there anything you require from me at this time?' Bligh looked at the Vulcan and smiled.

'I know you did a lot today. Go and rest, Lieutenant.' He nodded.

'Thank you.' Except resting was not what he intended. Instead, he borrowed a tricorder from sickbay and returned to the planet. He knew the properties of the soil they used in the greenhouse. Apparently it was not what the trees that came from human life required. His readings from the soil on the planet, however, were not very different. Once he was on the surface, Spock's curiosity got the better of him. He wondered if the four trees they had found were the only ones. He ventured into the forest, cautious and alert. He could imagine what Leonard would tell him when he learned he was here alone, but he doubted that whatever had transformed the humans could transform him, too. This was not something that had anything to do with the thyroid.

For one moment Spock contemplated if McCoy's thought that this was a curse was correct. For all his knowledge, there was no way to turn a human into a plant or the other way round. But even if such a thing as a curse were possible, there had to be someone who spoke the curse, and no-one here or on the station had such powers.

First, Spock's search remained without a result. Then he took a good look at the tricorder settings. He had copied the ones he had memorised from McCoy's tricorder when they had first found the trees. Now, he changed them, set the tricorder up for a less detailed search – and was pointed towards the other side of the water. Intrigued, he followed the directions of the instrument.

Spock was not entirely certain what he had expected, but certainly not this. There were countless small shrubs – from the size of daisies to some reaching to his ankles – with that furry bark. It seemed they had started to appear on the bank of the pond, spreading from there in a semi-circle. Spock knelt and ran his fingers over the surface of a larger shrub and felt thoughts. Not those of a human, something much more primitive, a ghost of a forgotten dream of running, scouring, eating, sleeping. 'Fascinating.' Changing the tricorder settings again, Spock detected a skeletal pattern in the shrubs, like that of a human had been found in the trees. There were a couple small animal species on this planet, and apparently they were very prone to be affected by whatever this was. They, however, did not die of it. He tapped his combadge. 'Spock to Morales. Request a gardening trowel beamed down to my location.'

'Acknowledged.' He didn't have to wait long. Careful not to break any roots – who knew what they were in the unlikely event that it was possible to transform the plants back? – he took six of the shrubs, samples of what seemed to come from different species of animals, of course. Spock did not like experimenting on plants that were actually animals. But given the choice between them and the two humans, there was only one way to act. Also, it seemed that these smaller shrubs thrived while the large trees withered. The soil was no different here. It had to be something else, and he was determined to find out. But before he started working on that, he reminded himself, he had to report back to Leonard and take whatever the man was going to give him. He could not let himself slip the way he had before.

* * *

_((I realise that Spock doesn't use contractions – except, he does. In This Side of Paradise and All Our Yesterdays, both cases where he's not entirely himself. In the latter case he's even talking to McCoy when he does.))_


	10. Oh My Compassionate Light

_((Don't get used to that frequency of updates._

_The more I have happening in a chapter, the more difficult I find it to name it. Damn. Choose who you want to pin that line on. It's from the song _Wunderbar_ by _Deine Lakaien_. No, I didn't translate this into English. The song itself is (mostly) English, horribly sad, I love it to pieces, and I hate to think about it because then it starts rotating in my head for eternity. What have I just done to myself?))_

* * *

'This thing telling you anything other than that you really need a haircut, Jim?' Bones's voice was tired but amused. He sauntered over to the bed and fell into the chair Spock had left there. 'If it is, maybe I can borrow it. I'd like some answers. Like why the hell everything's falling apart here. Or what I did to that tricorder down on the planet. It's not working right since then.' Jim placed the nara capsule on his bedside table and looked at his friend.

'What do you mean, not working right?'

'I was too lazy to manually change the settings back, so I set it to default. Only the thing is giving me different readings than the rest of them now.' He shrugged. 'Spock was down on the planet.' Jim sat up abruptly, only to be pushed back into the sheets. 'Calm down, man. I said was, not went down and vanished. He found a few more brushes like our trees. Took them back here. He's going to return the tricorder later. Apparently he didn't even tell Bligh he was going. Stubborn Vulcan.'

'He's all right, though?' Bones smiled.

'He's fine. Except like I thought his thyroid is feeling a bit off-centre. So's mine. You, by the way, are fine again. I don't get this, to tell you the truth. These things don't just come and go. Trouble is, this makes it tough for Melczuk, and tough for us to prove she wasn't herself. I showed her the other capsule, by the way. I think she knows something, but she's not spilling. Maybe you could talk to her.'

'Me? I don't know Bones.'

'I do. You're a people person. Talk to her. Oh, and you're good to go.'

Irina Melczuk sat in a chair in a private room. Her look was sombre and not very promising. She tried to smile but failed magnificently. Jim set the two nara capsules down on the desk – Bones had returned the second one – and sat down. 'Commander, I wonder if you know anything about these.'

'I already told McCoy that I know nothing.' Jim rubbed the bridge of his nose.

'Yes, you did. And I must say, I believe you. Strange things seem to happen to people here. These … things aren't easy to get, and considering where they were placed there are only so many people who could have done it.' He leaned forwards. 'If you were to lock these, what would you say? If you wanted them closed to anyone but you?' For a moment, Melczuk looked as though she was about to kick Jim out of the room, then she took a deep breath.

'Darja Marija.' A low humming sound started to fill the air, swelling to something close to a whine. Then something clicked, and the two opened simultaneously.

'Darja Marija?' Jim echoed. He never stood a chance in hell.

'My daughter. She died when she was three.' Jim swallowed, unsure what to say. 'Go on, look. I'm as curious about what's in there as you.' Her tone was back to the brisk snappish voice she normally used. He nodded.

In both capsules there were small, see through chips. He inserted the first one into a slot in the computer. 'The sarium krellide cells are under the transporter pad,' he read out loud. Without looking at the Commander, he inserted the second chip. 'Something has to break to fill the space.' He frowned.

'That makes no sense at all,' Melczuk pointed out. Jim frowned and opened a channel to the science department.

'Kirk to Commodore Bligh.'

'Bligh here, Captain.'

'Is the transporter room in engineering accessible?'

'It is, but the transporter is still unusable, of course.'

'I know. Thank you. Kirk out.' He did look at Melczuk now. 'I don't know what is happening here, Commander. But I do know that nothing is ever unsolvable. I'll come back to you when I know more.' A slow smile formed on her face.

'You wear a captain's uniform, and now that you do, you also have his voice. I can see what makes you such an excellent leader.' She seemed to steel herself. 'I'm told I signed the PADD that said the transporter was repaired. Tell me true, Kirk, did I also sabotage it?' Jim took a moment to consider. It seemed to be the only logical conclusion, but in order to be certain, he had to check under the transporter pad.

'I don't know, Commander. I'll find out.' He lowered his voice slightly. 'Look, if you had what Kresar had, whatever happened isn't your fault.'

'So I've been told, Captain Kirk. So I've been told.'

ϡ

It seemed the engineering department had died out. He was certain that there were people around, but after what had happened a deathly quiet had settled. Respect to those lost and the need to process what had happened silenced everyone. Jim felt like an intruder, which was absolutely ridiculous. He waited patiently. What he wanted to do he couldn't do alone. Vral arrived after a few minutes. 'We need to look under the transporter pad,' Jim told him in a hushed voice. Inwardly, he reprimanded himself. He cleared his throat. 'Remember the little things we found where the sarium krellide cells were supposed to be? I think we'll find them there. So, just how do you raise the transporter pad nowadays?' For a moment, Vral hesitated. Jim couldn't blame him. They had been instructed not to do anything without checking with Melczuk first. But now, that was no longer valid. Vral came to the same conclusion.

'You know the differences in the construction?' Jim nodded, and Vral grinned at him.

'Then you know how.'

'Stop me if I do something dramatically foolish.' He stood behind the controls, looked at them and took inventory of what did what. 'Right.' He entered the sequence he thought was correct, then waited before the final one. 'That good?' Vral shrugged.

'Only one way to find out.' Jim glanced at the Caitian.

'True.' He gave the final command and slowly, the pad was lifted. It took a full five minutes until it was raised, the sound it made indicating that something was wedged into a place it shouldn't be. 'Oh, yes, that's how I like it.' They both stepped closer, and suddenly, Jim felt hesitant. Steeling himself, he glanced at the interior of the transporter. 'Looks different.' He found something suspicious and frowned. 'However … I am very certain this doesn't belong here.' Two longish metal tubes that looked suspiciously as if they fit into the slots he had taken the nara capsules from were stuck in the cramped space of the transporter. One of them had bent and broken a relatively spring. 'That's the Heisenberg compensator.' Vral nodded.

'As we suspected. But … why?' Jim wished he had an answer.

'Why … I don't think we'll ever know. Unless I can persuade someone to do something … unorthodox.'

ϡ

Leonard hadn't taken care of a half Vulcan for a good portion of his career for nothing. He had learned that what was right for humans wasn't necessarily right for Vulcans, but that was nothing he hadn't expected. He had struggled a lot more with the fact that what was right for a Vulcan wasn't right for a half Vulcan. Especially when physiologically he was so Vulcan no-one would have suspected him of being anything else. But in due course, he had learned how to change the composition of certain medication to something that didn't cause the poor soul cramps.

By now, he quite enjoyed his task. It was something different than dealing with the carnage left after a huge accident. So when the door opened while he was mixing the carrier substance he knew would do no harm, he glanced at the door with a serene face, which turned into a grin when he saw who it was. 'You can stay right here. I'll transform you back into your accountable self.'

'That would be appreciated.' Spock leaned against the door frame and watched the doctor from there. 'I have returned the tricorder.'

'You give me an opening? Very well. What the hell do you think you're doing, going down to a planet where people turn into trees and die? What do you think it'd do to Jim if that had happened to you? Did you even think about that? I think not.'

'I doubt that whatever caused this is compatible with me.'

'You doubt. You don't know.' He prepared the hypospray and approached Spock with a frown. 'I'll blame that on your freaking thyroid, too.'

'Perhaps,' Spock allowed. 'I noticed something strange about the tricorder. I changed the settings on the planet and now I wanted to return them to default.' Leonard applied the hypo and screwed up his face.

'Now don't tell me that it's registering enormous amounts of something it can't really pin a name on.'

'I am afraid that is precisely what it is doing.'

'Yeah. So did mine. How can that be?'

'The logical conclusion would be that for some reason all tricorders are set to ignore these readings.'

'Well, but that's insane.' Spock looked at him.

'I believe I will talk to the Commodore. Maybe he has an explanation.' Leonard nodded.

'Yeah. Tell me what he said, will you? Because I wonder if everyone's nuts here.'

'I fear this entire situation is a combination of multiple suboptimal circumstances and an irritating degree of incompetence.' Leonard glanced at the door and lowered his voice.

'On whose part?'

'Look up the history of all our respective superior officers, Leonard. Draw your own conclusions.' Leonard watched him go, then he sat down at the computer and frowned. 'McCoy to engineering.'

'Tilak here.'

'Hello there. You saw Captain Kirk somewhere down there? Please get him to the intercom for me.'

'Bones. I was going to come back up in a minute, but this damn thing isn't moving back down.'

'I don't even want to know what you're talking about. Remember what I said about the tricorder? The one that Spock had too is going nuts too.'

'Oh?'

'Oh. Jim, I don't like this at all. Would you mind going up to science and … wait, there's someone at the door.' He saw Kopty with a murderous look on his face and swallowed. 'Look … this isn't good. Spock will fill you in.'

'Not good at all. Who ordered security for Irina?'

'T'Kray did. For the Commander's own safety. We agreed on that.'

'Did T'Kray order it?'

'Didn't I just say that?'

'Check.' Leonard suppressed a sigh and opened the corresponding log file.

'Yes, she did. Right after she had brought her here. And no-one ordered them away.'

'Because they are gone. Find out who they were. They're in real trouble.' Leonard frowned.

'Why? Did she run away?' Kopty growled.

'No. She killed herself.'

ϡ

Jim was as curious as the proverbial cat, but he decided that whatever had happened in sickbay was under control. He didn't own the place, he reminded himself, no-one had to answer him at all. And if they did, he couldn't make decisions. He wished this would be more of a relief. In truth, it was a burden.

In the science department, Spock and Kresar had their heads together over a group of small shrubs. 'And what exactly are these?' he asked, dreading the answer.

'Remnants of small animals that share the fate of the human scientists,' Kresar replied. 'We also seem to have an answer why the trees die and the shrubs don't.' Jim hadn't intended to address the subject at all, but he couldn't help himself.

'Spock … about that trip of yours. Would you mind telling me next time? I'd have come with you. Anyone could have gone with you.' Spock's lips tightened.

'In hindsight, I acted slightly recklessly.' Jim waved him away.

'Just … try not to be the fool that I sometimes am. I'll do the same. Now what about these?'

'Jim, do you know how plants transport nourishment from the soil?'

'They have similar vessels to our blood system.'

'In essence, that is correct. Now imagine your aorta were the size of that of a much smaller animal. What would happen?' Jim raised his eyebrows.

'Well … I guess, I'd die. Maybe because there wouldn't be enough oxygen transported … wherever, but it sounds dangerous.'

'The same happens to the trees. They are large, because humans are large. The relative amount of vascular tissues in these trees is nowhere near sufficient to sustain the trees. That is, luckily, something we can help with by adding extra nourishment to the water. We can keep them alive.'

'Well, you at least have good news. Spock, I don't know what Bones wants me to do about that, but he says the tricorders aren't working right.' Spock nodded.

'Ah, yes.' He turned and picked up a tricorder – a normal one, not those from the medical department – and handed it to Jim. 'Take a look.' He did. One undefined substance was shown in a quantity so high it was displayed in a power of ten.

'What is that even?'

'Pollen.'

'Oh. And … is that in any way significant?'

'I do not know. But according to the log files, Commodore Bligh ordered the results for this kind of pollen be ignored. He recorded that they were everywhere, clung to clothing, but were perfectly harmless. There were at least ten pollen per cubic centimetre.'

'Ten per … that's nothing compared to … this!'

'True.' He frowned. 'Spock, I'm not a scientist, so this is a shot in the dark. Can this cause the hyperthyreosis and the madness?'

'Negative, Captain, although the thought has occurred to me. The pollen were tested very thoroughly, they cannot have any such effect, at least not directly. However, I shall do further research.'

'You think they are significant.'

'Jim, a short time ago, this place was very peaceful and harmless enough to send people here that need training. Now, the situation is all but out of control. We can communicate with vessels but not from the tower. Luckily, they do receive our warnings. There is a saboteur on the station, and I doubt that it is only one. We may never know who it is, and even if we did know, it would hardly matter. I cannot believe that the dramatic increase of this specific pollen is a coincidence.'

'So … what can be done?'

'Kresar and I shall conduct further research. The Commodore has other things to take care of – to re-establish communications and automated control of the docks being the most pressing ones. I will, eventually, return to the planet surface. And I shall not go alone. Did you have any success with the capsule?' Jim's eyebrows shot up.

'Indeed. I talked to Commander Melczuk, you know, and she opened them. I don't think she remembered them, she just … chose a command that was close to her heart. Long story short, the missing power cells from the shuttles were rammed into the Heisenberg compensator. You can imagine the rest.'

'You know what the conclusion is.' It wasn't a question.

'Indeed, although I don't like it. She must also have manipulated the computer, but if she doesn't remember, she can't … Look, could you or T'Kray … help her remember, if she agrees? That would make it a lot easier to start fixing things.' Jim thought that Spock very nearly sighed.

_'__The thought has occurred to me, too. I do not like the idea, but it may be the only way to get to the bottom of this situation, as the saying goes.'_


	11. The Question to the Answer

_((Chapter heading is a part of a line of the song _Mother of Light_ by _Epica_. That in turn is, I think, an allusion to Douglas Adams. I had no idea what the hell I'll name this chapter, I just finished writing it and pondered. This song had started a bit earlier, and suddenly I am presented with this line. That's how I like it. :) ))_

* * *

The news of Commander Melczuk's suicide had travelled through the space station like a wildfire. The good doctor had proven his presence of mind by taking back the two nara capsules Jim had left with her. They could be used for communication, and it was high time they agreed on another meeting by the lake. For one thing, they had to return to the planet surface for further research. For another, they needed another opportunity to be among themselves. Somehow Spock felt it was not safe to communicate in their rooms.

So Leonard had given one of the capsules to Spock and one to T'Kray during a break. Spock could of course communicate to Jim without words. The message was a short one: 1.00. The code had been passed with the capsule, disguised as a handshake accompanied by a hearty 'Fancy seeing you', which had turned out to be the phrase for opening the capsule.

This time, they had two tricorders with them. An ordinary one, since Spock could now access them without having to ask, and one from the sickbay. 'Not that I'm scared, but just how likely is it that one of us will be plantified?' Spock raised an eyebrow.

'Plantified, Leonard? That is hardly a scientific term.'

'No, but one that describes it well enough. So, any odds?'

'Actually, I do not know.' That fact alone was quite annoying. 'As imprecise an answer as it is, I must say unlikely. At daytime, there are still people working outside, and since the last incident, nothing has happened. Because I do not know what determines the transformation, I cannot give you odds.' He pressed his lips together for a moment. 'I have come to the conclusion that we should not spend an extended period of time here, however. It seems that the scientists that were affected were in the forest for at least five hours. However …' He broke off and took readings of the air around them. 'Interesting. There are even less pollen here at this moment than we had on the station. There are, however, these other single-cell organisms. They are the ovules, as it turns out. The female counterpart.' McCoy frowned at that.

'External fertilisation, Spock? In plants?'

'Rare, but not non-existent. Common in algae but not in higher plants. Doctor, could you set your tricorder to take readings only of the individuals present and exclude the surrounding air?' Leonard beamed at him.

'Why, yes, I can.' He adjusted the settings with a lasting smile. 'You know, I think this was a good idea. To come here. But I must say, I don't feel I need a year.'

'None of us do. Please take readings from all of us. Find if the pollen are in our systems. Then I suggest we go to the dead trees. There is something I would like to know.' Leonard ran the scanners over them all and his expression changed to one of disbelief.

'Well. That's odd. They're present in all of us, a bit in Jim, hardly any in us, and quite a lot in T'Kray, but they're dying.' He looked concerned but kept his mind on their task and set off towards the place where they had found the scientists. 'And they're not in the blood. They're in the brainstem. That can't be good.'

'Interesting. I suggest that you take regular readings off all of us, if possible, every two hours. The development, whatever that is, is fairly rapid. I believe, T'Kray, that to hold on to your control will take more effort soon. Be prepared for that.' The psychologist nodded absently. Leonard took her arm.

'Hey, what's eating you?' She blinked and looked at him.

'How could she kill herself in our sickbay, under our very nose?' Leonard sighed.

'Well, the two guards can contemplate that in the brig. I don't know. Maybe they too got this thing. Maybe they didn't.'

'I requested them because this is what I feared would happen.'

'I know. Thing is, I think Spock's right with something he said earlier. The people in charge here have been promoted to this place because they can't do any damage here. All of them, including Melczuk, have done horribly foolish things before. Instead of a punishment, they were promoted and sent here, into the middle of nowhere. A place where nothing ever goes wrong and they can't hurt anyone. Kopty lost a patient because he didn't double-check the contents of a hypo a younger doctor handed him. He didn't need to check because the other wasn't a houseman, but he should have anyway, I know I would. Melczuk ruined some pretty expensive equipment. And Bligh … Bligh has a passive-aggressive personality disorder that's under control but a horrible risk at another place than this. They can't just get rid of the people because they're actually good at what they do, so the put them in a place where they are safe. Only it turns out, here isn't safe for anyone, and so the slips they make are actually very dangerous.'

'What does this have to do with the guards, Len?' There was a hint of impatience in T'Kray's voice, and Leonard cocked his head.

'Well, the guards may have been sent here as some sort of not-quite-punishment, too. Now will you look at that.'

'What?'

'Your pollen are almost all dead.'

'And?'

'And … they're … oh, that's not good.'

'What?'

'As they die, they release a chemical that influences the brainstem into sending an emergency signal to your thyroid, put simply.' Spock raised an eyebrow.

'Fascinating. That explains a part of what is happening.' Jim rubbed the bridge of his nose.

'Spock, might I try another shot in the dark?'

'Certainly.'

'Is it at all possible that this is very lucky? Is there a chance that these pollen in the brainstem attract the female pollen and if they … meet within the same organism the person is turned into a tree?' Spock looked at him for a long time, pondering the implications of that theory.

'This is as worrying as it is plausible, Jim. I believe we should return to the station very soon. There are still things to be found out. Now …' He contemplated the dead tree and braced himself. When he touched it, he felt … nothing. 'T'Kray, would you mind trying?' Exchanging a glance with Spock, she put her palm to the bark as well.

'Nothing. What did you expect?' Spock knew that his disappointment showed, and for once, he did not care.

'Kresar had an idea that made me wonder if there is a chance the people are still alive even if their trees are dead. However, this is not the case. I had feared as much. Nevertheless, it is one hope vanquished.'

ϡ

It seemed almost as if the Commodore had forgotten they were there. They still had their lectures on the planet – and now they heard things they actually needed. Jim had acquired the knowledge he would need by himself, so the lectures were moments he and Spock used for practising shielding. By now, the human could construct a shield by himself. What he could not do was maintain a weaker form that needed only a moment's thought to strengthen. He did manage to communicate at times, however. Spock nearly smiled at the thought. This was more difficult by far, but he wanted it so badly he somehow managed it. Most of the time, without consequence. When he tried too hard, it was almost painful, as if he yelled at the top of his lungs directly into Spock's ear. But those lapses were getting rarer, and if he was not too tired, Jim was quite coherent in his transmissions. Like now, where Jim was in engineering and apparently had a moment to himself.

_Anything new?_

_If you find a moment to come here, I can show you_, Spock returned. They had indeed found something. Jim's shot in the dark had actually hit the metaphorical bull's eye. Spock had done further research, and not all the conclusions that could be drawn were , theywere nowhere nearer to a solution, something that stopped this from happening in the future, an explanation why it was happening now and never before, and how – if at all – it was possible to get the two men back that were still caught in the trees.

Both Spock and T'Kray had established telepathic contact with the men. There were thoughts. Frantic, scared, and always going in circles. T'Kray had said that was because what they caught were their last thoughts recurring constantly. There was no sign of these thoughts weakening, which was a good thing. However, they did not change either, and they both wondered what that would mean if they could indeed be restored to their human forms. Would their thoughts still be trapped?

The similarity to the state in which Jim had been on the planet Dainam was something both he and T'Kray saw. She had addressed this and had pointed out there was nothing they could do. Jim had been saved with a bacteria that was completely inaccessible. And even if they had it, Spock was less than certain that this would have been an option. For one thing, the scientists were relatively young. After the bacteria-induced rejuvenation, just how young would they be? Toddlers? Unborn foetuses that would die instantly because they were cut off from any potential source of nourishment? Would it simply not work because they were too young? And even if that was not the issue, somehow the side-effect the process had would hit and two people somewhere in the quadrant would come back to life, but only for a spell. They, too would perish because their minds were trapped without any hope of being reconnected. No, this was not an option, and that was actually a good thing.

Of course, these thoughts were moot as long as they had no idea how to undo the physical change in the first place. The door swished open behind Spock, and he shook himself out of his reverie. He did not need to look in order to know who it was. 'You were right, Jim,' he said as the human approached him. 'I had to sacrifice a mouse-like mammal to be certain.' Jim glanced at the very small potted plant on the desk next to the computer screen, and Spock nodded. 'Depending on the size of the animal, the process is very fast or takes several minutes, I assume. I shall not investigate, however. The tricorder did not register pain, but fear of what was happening. And this fear is still there.'

'Can it be undone?'

'Unknown.' Jim sat down next to him, close enough to feel his warmth. 'Do you know how ferns reproduce, Jim?' The human frowned.

'I learned that in school. Something about generations or so. They have different … forms according to their stage of development or so.'

'Close enough, and this is similar. The trees also have a metagenetic cycle, although it must be longersince this is the first occurrence. The trees are diploid anddioecious.' Jim laughed.

'You've lost me, Spock. Can you speak Standard?' The Vulcan obliged.

'This means that the trees have two sets of chromosomes as you and I do and that they have distinct males and females. Many known plants have a mixture of male, female, and bisexual flowers, ours are limited to the sex of the animal or person that was used in the creation of the tree.

'There are many Earth plants that function like this. They need the environment, like birds or insects, to reproduce. Our species here produces pollen and ovules as well, but from there onwards, their reproduction is more similar to that of ferns and mosses: Both their gametes are air- and waterborne and lie dormant for an unknown amount of time. What started their activity I do not know, but they do not just collide in the air to form a new plant, simply speaking. Instead, from these pollen and ovules, a small haploid plant, with only one set of chromosomes, starts to grow. The pollen need to be inside a human or animal organism. For a brief period of time they can be found in a blood sample, but all the tricorders were set to ignore the pollen.'

'Great.'

'Indeed. Once the pollen reach their destination, the brainstem, the development commences. The ovules, in turn, develop into minute flagellates. We saw these as the cloud over the lake.'

'Does that mean if one of us had carried the pollen in their brains we'd be trees now?'

'It does. However, the time frame for that is very short. The male haploid plants start to die very soon. In the small animals that inhabit Mavenow that does not matter. If no ovules reach them in time, they are likely to be aggressive until their immune system has defeated the parasites and the after effect subsides. Many will, however, attract the female plants, or so I believe. Perhaps the sheer amount of them is sufficient without any biochemical attraction. I also assume that the pollen survive longer in a smaller host. All this, however, is still a matter of conjecture.' Spock activated the computer screen. 'This is a graphic that shows the stages of the alternation of generations: The diploid bush with males and females. The pollen that float in the air or the water. The respective haploid multicellular organisms in the brainstem and with the flagellae. And then the next generation of bushes, grown from an unsuspecting host.'

'And how is a person turned into a tree?' Jim asked patiently.

'Kresar is working on that,' Spock replied. The Vulcan allowed himself a sigh. 'If their genetic material is altered, there is no way to return these people to their natural state. If that were the case, however, I doubt we would have found the bone structure with the tricorder, not to mention human thoughts. Before we attempt anything, we must be absolutely certain, however.'

'You're having an idea, aren't you?' Jim leaned closer. 'Come on, spit it out, even if it's just an educated guess.'

'Kresar pointed out that the tree might be blocking our readings. We cannot be certain that the people or animals are not still … in there.' With his mouth slightly open, Jim glanced again at the small part.

'You mean … stuck inside the plant? Trapped in a suit of bark?'

'It is one of many options. The fact that the tricorder readings were very weak but undeniably present confirms that.'

'Can't you just open one of the small ones and look?' Spock frowned slightly.

'We did that, against my wishes. Of course, it was to no avail. The host lives only as long as the plant. If you destroy the plant, you kill the host.' Spock realised that Jim must feel his concern, and indeed, his bondmate placed a hand on the back of his head and caressed him with his fingertips.

'Spock, you're doing all you can. Do nothing you aren't comfortable with.'

'That is impossible. I have to conduct experiments with the plants, knowing they are animals that feel pain and are afraid.' Jim sighed.

'Any idea how we can prevent this from continuing?'

'The amount of pollen in the air is decreasing rapidly. At first I thought it was a coincidence that each time two men were affected at once. Now, however, I believe the saturation was much higher when the first two men were transformed. At this rate, prevention will no longer be necessary in a few days, at least for the time being. We have to find out what triggered the activity, how to predict the beginning of the next cycle, and then, how to protect our people. Not the animals, however. Their sacrifice is required for the plant to survive.'

* * *

_((And this, my friends, is what I meant at the outset, about me putting myself into trouble. I knew this from the start, of course. What was happening. I also had a metagenetic cycle in mind, but not in this detail. I bounced this off my pocket-biologist again, as I did with a bit of _Air_, and got her blessing, which makes me quite proud._

_I am very glad that I am on vacation right now because I stand no chance in hell to whip up something like this at work. No. Damn. Way.))_


	12. For the Flowers are Great Blessings

_((Chapter heading is a line from Britten's _Rejoice in the Lamb_. I reiterate: Don't get used to that frequency of updates.))_

* * *

'There is something we forgot to consider,' Kresar said suddenly, out of nowhere in the middle of their work. Spock looked up from the computer. By now, the Caitian knew that this was his way of saying that he should speak up. 'Whatever caused the start of the reproductive cycle, these trees aren't the only plants it worked on.'

'Of course. There were many plants that were never found before.' He frowned. 'You are right. We can rule out insects.' The Caitian's ears flattened, an expression of frustration.

'Then what? The weather didn't change in a way that doesn't fit the season.'

'No.' Spock had to admit to himself that he had no idea. 'We can try to pinpoint a time before the first two scientists vanished. Then we have to find something in the computer log. Anything at all.'

'I'll get to it. I'm at a loss with the bushes. Why didn't we find anything in the trees when we opened them?' The likely answer was because there was nothing to be found, but Spock was as unwilling to accept that as Kresar was.

'Because we did not look close enough. I am almost convinced that the people structurally still exist. I do have something new, however: I know how the flagellates find the infected organisms. The male plants in the brainstem cause them to seek them. The flagellates have a quite distinctive smell, to me quite an unpleasant one. I assume that would change, were I infected.'

'And ready to be turned into a tree.'

'Plantified,' Spock said automatically. Kresar looked at him and burst into laughter.

'I thought you Vulcans don't have a sense of humour.'

'Humans do, and it seems I spend too much time with them.' He offered a half-smile. 'Speaking of which, my shift has ended thirty-nine minutes ago, and I had plans for the evening. If you will excuse me.' Kresar's eyes twinkled.

'Give your Captain my regards.'

ϡ

Exhaling, T'Kray opened her eyes again and listened. Not to her surroundings, but into her very self. She was calm. She needed to be for what she planned. Len's shift would end in five minutes, and T'Kray intended to intercept him. So she sat and listened – this time to the corridor he would have to pass on his way to his own cabin.

She did hear him, and opened when Leonard was just outside. He stopped and smiled at her. 'Please come in,' she said seriously. The reaction on his face was instantaneous, a slight furrowing of his brows, a shadow of suppressed worry. That was precisely the point. She had felt his unease before, and it was growing. For a moment she had thought he was losing patience with her or with himself. Then she had seriously believed he might have second thoughts. Being a telepath should have helped, but with the man's iron shield, she could not pick up anything that wasn't an extreme emotional reaction. 'Len. What's up with you?' His right eyebrow was a little more strongly arched than the other, and slowly, it travelled up, the curve even more pronounced. It was endearing, she had to admit.

'With me? I'm …'

'Don't lie to me, please.' Leonard pursed his lips and nodded. 'You are concerned, and it's directed at me.'

'I just … you seem miles away, T'Kray, and I don't know how to reach you.' That was interesting. T'Kray was very certain that her behaviour hadn't changed in any way. She sat down on one of her chairs and indicated the one across her.

'Do I act differently?'

'Yeah, you …' He hesitated. 'I don't know, can't point my finger at it.' T'Kray shook her head marginally and offered her middle- and forefinger. Leonard responded, and she allowed the small emotional exchange. To her, it didn't feel differently. This touch didn't allow for much more than a mutual transfer of unspoken affection.

'Do you trust me?' she asked softly.

'I … sure, what a question.'

'I would like to meld with you. I shall not go deep.' He nodded without hesitation, surprising himself. Her fingers found the points on his face, and she went to find the shield that refused to budge, expecting it to have hardened further, allowing less of her mind to reach within. She nearly jumped at what she found and lost her concentration.

'Len … you fool.' He tilted his head at her. 'Once again?' He nodded slowly. This time she took a moment to prepare. She would have to work hard on herself. She craved this man's mind, but she needed to leave him in control. The shield he had erected was still there. It had been constant, ever present, only somehow their frequent brushes must have done something, because it was more like a shield should be. She nudged at it. _This is where you allow me, Len. No further. Will you not let me see you? I fear that you will slam all your defences up if I try._

_What do you mean?_ In such direct contact he could talk back.

_I mean that you feel I am detached. This made me think you were blocking me harder. But in fact you feel that way because a part of you wants more than I dared to offer. I offer now._ Leonard's reply was almost timid.

_A full mind meld? _T'Kray nodded. He couldn't see that with his eyes closed, but he caught the intent. _Hell, I don't know what I'll do if you try. But … you should try. I think … I think I'm ready._ And she did. Cautiously, she touched the shield. At the contact, it flared in defence, but only for a brief moment. After a careful nudge, the shield gave. It didn't break, it remained where it should be, but she was allowed through. And right there before her, she saw the soul of the man who had chosen her, whom she had chosen likewise. Deciding this was entirely unfair, T'Kray lowered her own shields, letting him see her. All her past fears, pain, and grief. All the joy he gave her by the simple fact that he allowed this.

When she withdrew from the meld, she had to admit she had lost her sense of time. It might have lasted hours or minutes, for all she knew. 'I believe,' she said hoarsely, 'that it is time you consider if I am really what you want for the rest of your life.' Leonard's smile was the most beautiful thing in the world.

'Ashal-veh,' he said softly, and T'Kray's mouth fell open. Had she somehow given him knowledge through their link? But if so, why that word? It wasn't the first one on her mind.

'Where do you get that from?'

'Spock. You weren't very forthcoming with an explanation of your Lenkam, so I asked.'

'Ah, and he said you should return the favour.' She took Leonard's hand into hers, caressing it with her thumb. 'You'll learn another one, then. Ashayam. Beloved.' Leonard rose and pulled her to her feet and into an embrace. His lips found hers, and T'Kray's eyes shut. She had expected him to do this, but she hadn't expected human kisses would feel so good. Her head was spinning with the sensation. Leonard was steering her somewhere, and only when her calves made contact with something did she realise where that was. She lowered herself onto the bed and pulled him with her. 'I take it you've made up your mind already.'

'Long time ago, at that.' His expression was sincere. 'Do it, T'Kray. Join us. Now. I'm certainly not going to change my mind, and we've waited long enough.'

'You realise how that is done, don't you?' Lost for words, her human nodded. 'Well.' For once making use of her strength, she pushed Leonard onto his back and straddled him, grinning down at him. 'In that case it seems that we are both overdressed, Lenkam.'

ϡ

Jim felt his heart pounding in his throat. 'Mavenow to Kirk.'

'Tell me already.'

'The tricorder arrived in perfect working order.' Jim punched the air and grinned at Vral before muting the connection for a moment.

'Are we good, or what?' The Caitian seemed to have grown since he had donned the real uniform the previous day. Things were starting to work again, ships could dock, and it appeared the transporter was functional as well. He didn't like what he had to do now, but there was no other way. He placed the two small cages he had borrowed from the science station on the transporter. 'Transporting two animals now,' he said into the open channel. 'Energise, Vral.' He locked eyes with the Caitian as he pushed the lever. 'Mavenow?'

'Both in perfect health. Bring them both and the tricorder back up.' Without waiting for another instruction, Vral did as he was told. One of the mammals was making soft chirruping sounds. They did that when they were afraid, and Jim couldn't blame the little thing.

'Don't worry, that was the last time. I'll return to you Spock in a moment.' He turned to Vral. 'Now me.' The Caitian took a deep breath. 'Oh, now come on. You know we've got to. The computer is working again and says it's all right, and the test just now confirms it.'

'I know.' The Caitian nodded.

'Energise.' Down on the planet, Jim saw the young scientist in her white robe with her arms folded.

'Welcome, Captain.' He grinned at her.

'Channel is open? Vral? I seem to be alive. Bring me back up, would you?' The Caitian smiled at him when he stepped back down from the transporter pad. 'Good work, Vral. Here's a thought, and maybe you can present it to Kresar. We, that's Spock, T'Kray, Doctor McCoy and myself, we'll see if we can't leave before a year is over. I'd ask you to consider joining my crew when your evaluation is complete.' Vral beamed at him.

'I'd be honoured.'

ϡ

The auditorium had never been so full since Leonard was on the space station. Now, they all had a few things to say after their research was almost concluded. So he sat on a chair with the wall behind his back, next to him Kresar and Commodore Bligh, while Spock presented his part of the report.

Leonard listened attentively as Spock explained just what had happened on the planet. So far, he had said what they had discussed already. Now he launched himself into why the hell it had all gone downhill. 'Three weeks prior to our arrival,' the Vulcan said, 'the sensors registered a coronal mass ejection. The space station, of course, is protected against this eventuality. The station on the planet has been build seven months after the planet was discovered and has measured sun activity ever since then for 103 years and four months. The solar activity was minimal until this rather impressive event.

'The solar storm was followed by the bushes that were dubbedfrutex villosus flowering.'

'Frutex villosus?' Leonard asked incredulously. 'Oh, you've got to be kidding me.' He had almost snorted. Almost. Bligh growled.

'Not the most sophisticated name science has come up with. But it's what they are, hairy bushes.' Leonard glanced at Jim who was trying desperately to stifle his laughter, and he wasn't the only one. T'Kray was entirely unfazed, of course, as was Spock. The latter frowned slightly, the humour for once entirely lost on him, and Leonard laughed.

'Do us all a favour, Spock, and just continue.'

'As I was about to say, these bushes were actually already in the database when we came here. The solar activity triggered the growth of multiple plants that were previously undetected. We can only assume that they will vanish again after a while to lie dormant until the next solar storm, but I doubt that any of us will live to see that day. The bushes live for a very long time until a solar flare forces them into flowering. After they release their gametes they die. We were able to reproduce the necessary circumstances in the science station. Kresar, this is your work.' The Caitian stepped up to the podium.

'Yeah well, we have covered the metagenesis already, so I'll spare you that,' he said. 'But this now is interesting. Aside from determining the cause of the transformation we also tried to find a way to free our scientists. We attempted cutting them out of the trees. Well, no, actually we tried cutting small mammals out of their bushes. That's a good thing, because they died.' The Caitian was obviously tense, and Leonard couldn't blame him. He was talking to the entirety of the science department as well as the entire level of command on the space station. He exchanged a short glance with Spock, who nodded briefly, encouraging the poor young being to continue. For all his usual swagger, that's what he was. 'We observed that after the pollen or ovules were released, the plants died and decayed very quickly. What did not decay so fast was at first disconcerting, at a closer look it gave us basis for further research that we have now concluded. It was the small mammal that had been the host for the small plant. It was, however, highly compressed and had a green hue. It decayed at a normal rate.'

'Question,' Leonard said. He smiled at Kresar, who seemed rather nervous that someone had spoken. 'Why didn't the trees on the planet decay so fast? They're still standing, far as I know.'

'Ah, yes. The bushes use a lot of their own substance to build the pollen. The trees died of malnutrition. Our test-specimen had ejected its own substance, so there wasn't that much left in the first place.' Leonard nodded, contented with the explanation. 'Would you like to … er … continue, Doctor?'

'Already? All right.' He rose and stood beside the other two. 'Well, from my perspective, things are simple. Keep monitoring the sun activity and keep an eye on those damn pollen. They're the real problem. They cause hyperthyreosis, psychoses, and subsequent memory loss. They're what caused someone to sabotage the transporter, the computer, and who knows what else. They're ultimately what drove Commander Irina Melczuk to take her own life when she realised what she had done. The symptoms only last for a couple of days. It seems Caitians react especially strongly and are in actual physical danger. There's no need to take blood samples. If you find someone has the pollen in their brainstem keep them clear of the ovules and wait until the immune system reacts. Then treat the symptoms. You have my medication in the log, altered for humans, Caitians, Vulcans, and Vulcan-human hybrids. Any other species will need adjustment, of course, but that shouldn't be a problem.' He shrugged. 'Well, that's all.' Commodore Bligh looked at them all.

'Well done. All of you. Do we know how we can free the scientists?'

'Not yet,' Spock said. 'I am, however, confident that there is a way.'

'In that case, I'll close the meeting. Oh, and I received those requests you gave me. I'll discuss them with my personnel. You'll have my replies soon.'

* * *

_((The implications of the name I gave the bushes hit me only when I proofread the chapter. I shamelessly projected my own reaction to what I'd done onto Jim. I very nearly changed the name, but then I thought, hell with it. There are names for plants and animals out there that are even worse than this one. Look up what the common stinkhorn is called in Latin before you name me pervert.))_


	13. If My Complaints Could Passions Move

_((The chapter heading is a song by John Dowland. Like most of his songs, it's a love song and has nothing to do with this chapter. Take it literally, if at all. :P_

_Also, I see this is drawing to a conclusion.))_

* * *

Spock configured the tricorder with great care. There was no margin for error in this. Yes, they had multiple specimen as the Commodore had told him, and yes, there were more near the pond. But they were living beings that would die at the slightest imprecision, so, no, there was literally no margin for error. They may not be humanoid, but they should not die unnecessarily. That nature demanded their sacrifice in an unknown number of years was a different matter entirely, but the Vulcan refused to risk killing them just so.

Bligh muttered something to the computer, no doubt impatient, but that hardly mattered. 'The readings confirm my suspicion. I can determine quite precisely where the structure I looked for is. I can tell you what animal this is. Its size would suggest it is very young, however, I doubt that. The bark of the tree is not very dense, but its own molecular structure almost blocks my readings, which is why they appear weak. That, too must be taken into consideration.

'It appears that the plants do not act like parasites at this point. This is a symbiosis. They feed the host with the nourishment they take, and the host, in turn offers a solid structure. The branches are very weak because of the brittle material the bush consists of. Where the animal is, it is much more firm.'

'Does that help us in any matter?'

'Indeed it does. The tree consumes water from the host, which is why it shrinks, and replaces the skin. The bones and flesh are the pith. There is no dead wood as you find in usual trees, but the skin of the animal or human is actually changed into what serves as the vascular cambium. This explains why the mammals can survive while humans can't.'

'Because the local animals have a thick hide, literally.'

'Indeed.' Spock glanced at the bush in front of him, hoping he was right about all this. Before he would do anything, he needed somebody else here. He walked to the computer. 'Spock to sickbay.'

'Kopty here.'

'Commander, I would like to borrow Doctor McCoy.'

'You have him. I'll send him over.'

'Thank you. I will need him to bring a sedative and sugar solution. Spock out.' He returned his gaze to Bligh. 'The fragile substance that remains after the bush has flowered are traces of bast fibre. That is what blocks our readings. It is consumed almost completely during the flowering process.'

'Well, if you're all set, what are you waiting for?'

'Doctor McCoy. After the process I have in mind, the animal will require medical attention.'

'It's an animal, Lieutenant. One of how many down on the planet?'

'I do not have sufficient data to answer that question. However, we want to keep in mind that the humans will also need help. We have to be certain that we can keep them alive afterwards. If that does not work with an animal, I do not deem it safe to try on humans.' The door opened, and McCoy came in. Spock nodded to him and continued. 'On the other hand, I do not think we should conclude that a human can be saved even if the animal is. That is something Doctor McCoy can evaluate.'

'What?' Leonard made. 'Evaluate what?'

'I would like to attempt freeing one of the mammals. You may need to sedate it. I do not know if surgery will be necessary, but I am quite certain that without medical attention, it cannot survive. Neither can a human.' The doctor took a deep breath.

'An earlier warning next time would be appreciated, Spock, but by all means. Knock yourself out.'

ϡ

Leonard watched the process with trepidation. Spock had injected something into the plant and stared at the computer for what seemed like an eternity. 'Expansion has begun,' he said then and proceeded to cut open the bark without removing it. And then Leonard saw it. There was a shift, the gaps between the sections of bark widening and underneath … wood.

'Now what?' he asked quietly. 'Is that how far you got before?'

'No. Before I did not know that the animal within is so dehydrated and malnourished a very small time away from the plant will kill it. I also did not understand that it does not have its normal skin any more. The skin will need to be transplanted.'

'All of it? Spock, do you know what kind of expanse we're talking here in a human? They'll die of an infection before I can even start properly.'

'The human average seems to be 1.91 square metres. However, the mucous membranes are unaffected.' Leonard rolled his eyes.

'Why, that's a relief then.'

'There is a more accurate formula …'

'Spare me the mathematics. And why the hell are we doing this up here and not in sickbay?'

'I do not believe this is necessary.' Leonard's blood ran cold at the detached tone from Bligh.

'Commodore, we're talking human lives here. I may be able to stabilise a small mammal long enough with a hypo full of sleep and sugar, but a human … Not to mention transplanting the entire skin. You know yourself what we're talking about here. I would say this can only be done in a clean room, only down in sickbay. Not here.'

'It will be done here. You refused to take care of these patients before and gave them to my department.' Heat crawled up Leonard's neck at that remark.

'Very well. I will state precisely that in my record. That I warned you about the potential consequences. If these people die, it'll be on your head.' Bligh glared at him.

'You forget that you want something from me, McCoy.' Leonard's eyebrows shot up.

'I want something from Starfleet Command, sir. I only asked you first because I deemed it polite. Spock, can you still stop that process?' The Vulcan shook his head by a fraction. 'Right. Then get a move on.' Wordlessly, Spock removed the bark and changed the settings on the computer that was taking constant readings.

'What do you make of this, doctor?' Leonard stepped closer and stared. The animal looked like a larger than average mouse. Only it didn't. Its form was as it should be, but the skin was hairless and looked like wood. And it had roots growing from its toes.

'Now what are we doing with that?'

'I believe the roots can and should be removed in surgery.'

'Obviously. Can they eat normally, Spock? Digest food? Breathe?' Spock ran a tricorder over the small animal.

'Indeed they can. And I am not certain if the cambium should be removed.'

'Cambium? That … hide?'

'Yes. It seems to have retained full functionality of human skin, and maybe more. I will need to take a sample to be certain.'

'Take whatever samples you must, I'll run my own tests. I'll tell you something, I'm not performing surgery in here.'

'You will, if I order it.' McCoy felt Spock's eyes on him, could almost hear him asking him to let it go, but he couldn't.

'No, I won't. Because I don't have to take an order that I believe jeopardises a patient's safety. I am not even allowed to follow your orders in that eventuality. And this is such a case. The surgery will happen in sickbay or you can do it yourself. See if I care.' The truth was, he did care. Maybe not so much for this mouse-creature, but Bligh's attitude was getting worse by the minute. 'Look, maybe I should just check you for pollen.'

'Are you saying I'm insane?'

'I am saying that your passive-aggressive behaviour is getting out of hand.' The words came without much thought, and the worst part was, it was true. Chances were that Bligh did not have a single dead pollen in his brain stem. It had been there all the time. Now things were slipping out of his control, and it was all getting worse.

'You have no authority to …' Leonard shook his head, silencing him as effectively as if he had yelled.

'I do not, but Doctor Kopty does. Spock, bring that animal down to sickbay, if you're allowed to. Otherwise I trust you to keep it alive until I get clearance for you.'

'This is an animal, for crying out loud!' Leonard was already at the door but turned.

'Regulations do not state that the life in question needs to be humanoid or intelligent. That is entirely up to me. And I'll tell you something: The humans in the trees are not animals. You don't seem to make a distinction. Well, neither do I.'

ϡ

'Doctor, would you please come inside.' With a wry smile, Leonard followed Kopty's beckon.

'Was the Commodore faster than I, then?' Kopty frowned slightly.

'I … McCoy, you don't seem like the type who antagonises people just for the fun of it, so I'll listen to what you have got to say.'

'I … I believe the Commodore needs help.'

'He said you called him insane.' Leonard rubbed the bridge of his nose and struggled to retain his composure.

'No. I did not. I said that we should look if he's got the pollen in his system, but I don't even think so. I believe that he is losing his grip. He's completely overchallenged and tries to ignore the problems. Tries to … I don't know, pretend like all is really well because there's been improvement.' He took a deep breath. 'Commander, he wanted me to operate in the science department. And it may be just an animal, but it's still a waste of life. And he wants … Well, Spock reckons he can free the scientists but they may need a full skin transplant. We don't know, but we can't try right next to the damn greenhouse. And that's what he wants.'

'No, that can't be done.' Kopty sighed. 'Well, I could say it was a matter of time.'

'Before what?'

'Before he breaks. You've read his record, you must have when you took a blood sample from him. You know what it says there. I've been having discussions with him, endless discussions, whether he needs therapy or not. Before you all came we had a psychotherapist, but he left maybe a week before your arrival. He took some medication from him, and he said he didn't need it any more. I tried to tell him he does, but would he listen? No. And I can't force-feed him. I can only wait until he does something so horrendous I can get rid of him.'

'Is this horrendous enough?' Kopty shook his head.

'Not yet.'

'With all due respect, you can't be telling me someone must die before you interfere.'

'No. No indeed. Kopty to science department.'

'Spock here.'

'I need Bligh.'

'The Commodore has left the department. I was on my way to sickbay with the animal.'

'Yes. Very good. If you meet Bligh on the way, send him to me. Kopty out.' He looked at Leonard again. 'You prepare your surgery. Keep that thing alive, McCoy. I'll run a few tests on Victor, and if he really skipped his medication I can say that he jeopardised his mental faculties and I'm pretty sure T'Kray will verify that he cannot function. There's just one thing. If he's gone, it's me that decides if you can go. Starfleet command has said it's up to us. There's no precedence for former Starfleet personnel undergoing this evaluation at all. So we have to decide if you are ready to go back into the real world, and with Commodore Bligh disabled, that decision falls on me.' He shook his head. 'You, for one, are more than ready, and so is T'Kray. I cannot really judge the other two, but given what Kirk did in engineering and the tower, and considering Spock's feat of finding a way to help the people in the trees … I think, yes. But the thing is, I need you, McCoy.' Leonard's eyes went wide.

'Don't do this to me, please.' Kopty smiled.

'You all want to stick together, don't you? I promise you one thing: I'll keep you all, if I decide to. It's in your hands. You see that this department can handle what is to come. Until the Commodore is replaced – and I have little to no doubt that he will be – I am in charge of the whole bleeding Morales. I don't like it, but that's how it is. And I'll have very little time for this here. I want you to take over for the time being. See that this place runs itself and you may go. And now I think you have a patient to attend to.'

ϡ

Spock had learned a long time ago that breathing down McCoy's shoulder while he worked was a foolproof way to get the man to explode. Therefore, he was mildly surprised when the doctor seemed rather relieved even at Spock's request to be present during the operation. 'You know what Spock, I think I'll leave it like that,' the doctor said eventually. Spock took a step closer and looked. The roots were gone, but the skin was still the green cambium. 'I gave it another scan with a medical tricorder. It protects it well enough, and I don't think it's necessary to transplant the skin.' He looked at the Vulcan. 'To tell you the truth, this is damn risky. I don't know. You can regrow skin pretty fast, but all of it? I just don't want to do this if it can be avoided.'

'Are we certain that it can be avoided, Leonard?' McCoy sighed.

'Only one way to find out.'

And that had been it. They had left the small animal as it was. It no longer had a fur, its skin was soft and pliable but maybe a little more robust than before. It seemed to thrive in sunlight. So from the medical point of view, it seemed to make little to no difference. They waited for two weeks. Their charge, which Leonard had named Bernard for some unfathomable reason, was happy as a clam and taking a liking to them. Spock had carried it back to the science department and kept it warm and fed. Leonard had come to visit it a number of times and threatened to teach it tricks. He was not fooling anyone; certainly not Spock. The man was worried. About the mouse as well as the scientists, not to mention Commodore Bligh.

After Doctor Kopty had intervened, things had spun out of their control. The result was an Admiral who took matters into his own hands with a pending court martial for the Commodore. Spock found this was actually a good thing. It was high time that someone with at least a modicum of competence was in charge. Leonard felt guilty, but there was no need for that. Spock had told him that soon after it was clear where this was leading, Jim had agreed with fervour, but that had not stopped the doctor from worrying who would want him on their ship if he had brought this on. Jim had merely shaken his head at that.

Spock took what equipment he needed and started to leave for the sickbay. They would free the scientists first of the bark, then their roots, and then … Then they would see what state they were in. 'Science department, please come in. This is Ndaga.' He raised an eyebrow at Kresar at his station.

'Spock here, Admiral.'

'Do you have a minute for me?'

'Certainly.'

_'__Come to my office, please. The others are already here.' There was a short pause. 'This is about your requests to leave. I have an answer for you. All of you.'_


End file.
